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CAPE CANAVERAL — NASA officials are delicately seeking advice about what to do with the 84,000 shattered pieces from Columbia, cautiously broaching the idea of putting some shuttle parts on display. There are mixed feelings among the survivors of the astronauts. “It touches everybody who sees it,” said Jonathan Clark, husband of astronaut Laurel Clark. “It has a tremendous impact on you. It makes you realize the importance of space exploration.” Kirstie McCool Chadwick, sister of pilot Willie McCool, said she supports the debris being used for research, but “I don’t know what the purpose of displaying it in public...

Board: Shuttle Lost Parts Over Calif. SPACE CENTER, Houston - Space shuttle Columbia began losing pieces over the California coast well before it disintegrated over Texas, the accident investigation board reported Tuesday, finally confirming what astronomers and amateur skywatchers have been saying from Day One. But board member James Hallock, a physicist and chief of the Transportation Department's aviation safety division, said the fragments were probably so small they burned up before reaching the ground. He said the conclusion that the space shuttle was shedding pieces a full six minutes before it came apart over Texas was based on images...

By JAMIE STENGLE Associated Press Writer February 10, 2003, 4:31 PM EST LUFKIN, Texas -- A Texas law enforcement officer was arrested Monday on federal charges he stole pieces of space shuttle Columbia. Harrison County Constable Robert Hagan II, 45, became the third person charged with looting shuttle debris that dropped onto the countryside. Hagan was charged with theft of government property for allegedly taking a piece of tile and other debris while helping with the recovery effort Feb. 1 and 2 in the Nacogdoches area. "It is a particularly troubling day when an individual who swore to uphold the...

NASA recovers shuttle wing section 02/07/2003 Associated Press NACOGDOCHES, Texas - NASA said Friday it has found an important piece of one of Columbia's wings and was removing it to a collection site in Fort Worth. NASA spaceflight office deputy Michael Kostelnik called it "a significant recovery." "We do have a large piece of one of the wings. It's not clear which wing this is, but obviously given the (unusual instrument readings) we have on the descent coming through the left wing, obviously this structure is very important." The wing piece was being taken to a military installation in...

Search just starting Debris, already found in 33 Texas counties, sought in recovery effort 02/03/2003 By LEE HANCOCK and DAVE MICHAELS / The Dallas Morning News LUFKIN, Texas - It is an unprecedented search for the pieces of an unimaginable puzzle. In the woods and in the air, on horseback and by boat, searchers combed East Texas on Sunday for the remains of space shuttle Columbia and its seven-member crew. "We are beginning to make progress," shuttle program director Ron Dittemore said at a news conference in Houston. "It's going to take us some days and weeks" to begin...

Schools searched for debris Some campuses may be closed today to allow EPA removal 02/03/2003 By STEPHANIE SANDOVAL / The Dallas Morning News Officials at school districts across the eastern half of Texas fanned out across their campuses Sunday to search for shuttle debris before children returned to classes Monday. Gov. Rick Perry directed districts in 93 counties to inspect all grounds, including rooftops. The Environmental Protection Agency will remove debris from school sites and recommends keeping schools closed until debris is removed. In North Texas, searchers located a piece of debris Sunday at Maypearl High School, said Chief...