[AP SCOOP] Space Shuttle Columbia Will Be Visible In San Francisco Area (6AM Pacific)

nasa

[leadpenny]

Space Shuttle Columbia is in a decent for the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and will pass over the San Francisco Area around 6:00 AM Pacific Time. Route will take the Shuttle over Las Vegas, Flagstaff, etc. NASA has still not decided which runway will be used. Landing will be at 9:16 AM Eastern.

[leadpenny]

Ya know, I hope you are wrong but you're probably right.

[leadpenny]

Yes. I just went back to re-read the thread after glennaro mentioned it. No one knew and I don't think anything innappropriate was said.

[RaceBannon]

I know I would feel like DIRT if I started this thread! That's all, It is a bit of history now, though, the event caught in the act of failing, from a good thing to a horror!

[1john2 3and4]

i left 2 messages and 1 email with foxnews suggesting....you know no one else would dare show it

[McGruff]

I know I would feel like DIRT if I started this thread!

Why would you say that. It started out as a heads up to west coasters for a normal shuttle landing. Something I may never see. Nobody knew that this would become a tragedy.

On a different topic I had to turn off Fox News Channel. Shepherd Smith is on and I'd rather watch CNN. Actually their coverage has been the best on this type of event. It's when they start to spout their political views I turn them off.

[SamAdams76]

Well it's been a crazy couple of hours. I had just taken a shower this morning and was all set to leave the house for errands this morning when I saw your thread about the Space Shuttle landing at 9:16 in Florida. I had a weird feeling and decided that this was something I ought to watch. Not that I thought anything bad might happen but I just got the impulse to turn on the TV and watch. This was about 8:40 and I figured since I was in no particular rush, I'd turn on the NASA station and see the landing. I very rarely bother watching Space Shuttle landings and liftoffs and wouldn't have done so this morning if not for your post.

So I went downstairs to watch it as it was being shown on the public access channel on my cable system. Everything looked normal at Mission Control and the shuttle was being tracked across the Pacific, over California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and then Texas. About 9AM, the tracking map that showed at Mission Control appeared to have been frozen and the forward progress of the shuttle stopped being shown.

At the time, I thought nothing of it, having rarely seen a landing televised. I expected the cameras to shift to Florida to show the landing itself. But as the minutes ticked on past 9AM, something just didn't seem right. Yet there was no visible alarm being shown at NASA Mission Control so I figured things were under control. About 9:05, I noticed that NASA was attempting to contact the shuttle through UHF. Again, I thought nothing of it, knowing that it is common for re-entering spacecraft to temporarily lose communications.

Suddenly I noticed that it was 9:11, only five minutes before the scheduled landing and the cameras still showed the workers at Mission control somberly monitoring their instruments and attempting to contact the spacecraft. Those people there are cool as cucumbers, I had no idea whatsoever that this was anything but a routine event, but it just didn't feel right that here it was, a few minutes before landing and no communication was yet established.

At that time, I thought of running to the computer to post here my concerns. But I figured I would just look like a fool. When the time of landing arrived, 9:16, and there was still no signs of communication, I became very puzzled. This was definitely not right, even though the folks at Mission Control didn't seem to be getting excited, it was downright quiet in that room. Out of curiosity I flipped over to FoxNews and saw the NEWS ALERT: NASA LOSES CONTACT WITH SHUTTLE.

At that moment, chills ran down my spine. I just knew that something catastrophic had happened. It was so bizzarre. Realize that I had no intention of watching this landing and in fact, didn't even know of a shuttle landing until seeing this thread. What a very weird coincidence that the one time I sit down to watch a shuttle landing, this happens.

Anyway, I just thought I'd post my thoughts on this very surreal morning. It really brings me back to the morning of January 28, 1986. Even the photos of the Columbia crew look eerily similar to the photos of the 1986 crew from Challenger.

May their souls rest in peace.

[SamAdams76]

What that photo you posted the liftoff of Columbia 16 days ago? I had not realized this was a breaking news story (about the foam insulation breaking away from the spacecraft after liftoff). Now I realize that this may have been a matter of grave concern for NASA since the liftoff. I wonder if the crew was aware of this at all?

Perhaps, and this is pure speculation, this might explain Pres. Bush's somber demeanor at yesterday's news conference with Blair. Perhaps he knew that the re-entry the next day was going to be dicey because of the missing material. Again, I'm just wildly speculating here and there may be nothing to it.

[1john2 3and4]

AND i just phoned the local talk radios, KLIF 570AM, and WBAP 820AM....the call screener at KLIF chided me for thinking such a thing, saying we didnt need to see such a thing, to which i (gently) replied; "what about going under the heading of: 'the public's RIGHT TO KNOW'?" the WBAP screener thought it was a good idea....

[leadpenny]

. . . . the call screener at KLIF chided me for thinking such a thing . . .

Must be a member of the local Thought Police Squad.

[McGruff]

What that photo you posted the liftoff of Columbia 16 days ago?

The photo in reply 66 was related to the story in reply 64. It's from today.
I hadn't heard anything about this incident at launch until today.

[1john2 3and4]

you know, im not sure about the appropriateness(?) of getting such footage and broadcasting it right away, but it sure would be viscerally powerful (to see the muslim crowd(s) celebrating) at SOME point....

[leadpenny]

Thank you for your thoughts. I've bookmarked the thread. I had the NASA TV station on and something clicked in me after about the third or fourth time Mission Control tried to establish UHF radio comm. Within minutes, when the long range cameras were not on, my pulse started racing.

[leadpenny]

Future reference:

Columbia Discussion thread

[wita]

I saved this one to disk, having left the thread on the desktop with just the first few comments. Took a shower did some bad shoulder exercises and the wife calls up from downstairs saying "it looks like we lost another shuttle crew". God bless the families who really bear the brunt of this event.

[leadpenny]

" . . . it looks like we lost another shuttle crew".

Almost my exact words when I woke up my son. I probably said "shuttle." Your pharse is more profound. The shuttle is just a thing with stubby wings. What we lost is the crew.

[socal_parrot]

Sad bump.

[baseballmom]

Your thread is chilling, leadpenny.

Reading through, I can sense your (and others) excitement at seeing a technilogical marvel, and then sense your despair at realizing the tragedy.

God bless the crew and the families.

[Sweet_Sunflower29]

I know I would feel like DIRT if I started this thread! That's all, It is a bit of history now, though, the event caught in the act of failing, from a good thing to a horror!

On the contrary...I personally find it profoundly interesting to be able to read fellow FReepers' first-hand accounts up to the last seconds before it was known that something tragic had taken place..

[leadpenny]

It truly is. Like frozen in time. I keep thinking of the families who were gathered at the KSC.

[leadpenny]

I've met Race Bannon. He's an (I alway forget, Race, is it ex or former?) ex/former Marine who stands about 6'9", weighs about 275 and has the heart of a puppy dog. I don't think he meant nuthin' by it. ;^)