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A sad goodbye to seven Space program will continue, Bush promises By Tatsha Robertson, Globe Staff, 2/5/2003
Under brisk, blue skies, the families and co-workers of the astronauts squeezed into rows of chairs and stood beneath trees on an expansive green courtyard at Johnson Space Center as the president assured them that their loved ones did not die in vain. ''Each of them knew that great endeavors are inseparable from great risk. And each of them accepted those risks willingly, even joyfully, in the cause of discovery,'' Bush said of the astronauts. ''America's space program will go on,'' the president declared.
Those were comforting words, especially to family members and hundreds of NASA employees who insisted as they left the service that the loss of life and the shuttle did not equate with failure. ''These were people who understood the risk and, naturally, they understood the rewards,'' said Brian Rishikof, a NASA engineer who knew Columbia's crew commander, Rick D. Husband. Others said their spirits were lifted after the president pledged to preserve the space program. ''It's very important for me personally and to the nation that the space program continue to move forward,'' said Gary Waits, a NASA employee. Members of Congress who attended said they would look for answers on why the shuttle broke up over Texas Saturday just 16 minutes before it was to land in Florida. They also said they would push for additional funding for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. ''These people -- the seven astronauts -- died every bit as much in our nation's defense as anyone on the field in battle because they kept us preeminent in the world,'' said Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, a Texas Republican. ''When you see all the national defense superiority we have because we have satellite communications and control in space, you realize these warriors are very much a part of our national defense and our honor.'' Senator Bill Nelson, a Florida Democrat who was a payload specialist aboard shuttle Columbia and landed 10 days before the Challenger disaster in 1986, said he will seek additional funding for safety upgrades at NASA. ''Space flight is a risky business, and we are willing to accept that risk,'' he said. On Monday, Bush requested nearly $800 million more for the $3.2 billion shuttle program in fiscal 2004, and Nelson said a majority in Congress will back an increase despite criticism from some quarters about the program's expense. NASA's overall budget of $15 billion would rise to $15.47 billion under Bush's plan. The Columbia crew consisted of shuttle commander Husband, pilot William McCool, payload commander Michael Anderson, payload specialist Ilan Ramon, and mission specialists Laurel Salton Clark, David Brown, and Kalpana Chawla, a naturalized citizen born in India. Ramon was a decorated Israeli Air Force colonel. NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe promised their families that officials will find out why the disaster occurred. ''We owe this to you, the families, and to the American people,'' he said. ''With an uncompromising commitment to safety, we will keep this solemn pledge.'' Families of the crew filled the front row at the service alongside the president and Laura Bush. The president noted that the disaster was especially painful for Texans who knew crew members or attended the same church. Flags flew at half-staff across the Houston area. Texans continued to bring flowers to a makeshift memorial outside the space center. A man carrying a large waving American flag walked across the busy street called NASA Road to the memorial. Joanna Blanchett, a robotics contractor for NASA, said the memorial service was especially poignant because Bush and other NASA officials tried to sketch a picture of the crew members for the audience. ''We would see these people every day in the hall,'' said Blanchett. ''So this was very touching.'' Bush said each crew member was passionate about the work. ''To leave behind earth and air and gravity is an ancient dream of humanity,'' Bush said. ''For these seven it was a dream fulfilled.'' Drawing laughter from the audience, Navy Captain Kent Rominger, chief of the astronauts' office, reflected on the lives of the seven astronauts he knew well. Rominger said it was 45-year-old Husband's gifted leadership that ''molded seven individuals from different parts of the world, from different backgrounds and religious beliefs, into an incredibly tight-knit family.'' Bush also praised the astronauts. He called McCool patriotic; Clark, a devoted physician; and said Chawla ''wanted to reach the stars.'' The president said Anderson told his minister: ''If this thing doesn't come out right, don't worry about me; I'm just going on higher.''
This story ran on page A1 of the Boston Globe on 2/5/2003.
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OUSTON -- During a somber memorial service for the seven astronauts who perished aboard the Columbia, President Bush promised thousands of mourners yesterday that the space program would continue despite mounting criticism of the program's expense and risks.
