STS-107, the last mission for the Space Shuttle Columbia, ended in disaster over Texas on 01 Feb 2003.
This waymarked memorial to that disaster stands at the International Forest of Friendship near the Moon Tree at Atchison KS.
The memorial consists of a polished black granite monument with the names and official portraits of the STS-107 and reads as follows:
"In honor of these Astronauts who perished serving their country in space on the Space Shuttle Columbia, February 1, 2003."
From Wikipedia: (
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"On February 1, 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated upon reentering Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven crew members.
The disaster was the second fatal accident in the Space Shuttle program after Space Shuttle Challenger, which broke apart and killed the seven-member crew 73 seconds after liftoff in 1986.
During the launch of STS-107, Columbia's 28th mission, a piece of foam insulation broke off from the Space Shuttle external tank and struck the left wing of the orbiter. A few previous shuttle launches had seen damage ranging from minor to major from foam shedding, but some engineers suspected that the damage to Columbia was more serious. NASA managers limited the investigation, reasoning that the crew could not have fixed the problem if it had been confirmed.
When Columbia re-entered the atmosphere of Earth, the damage allowed hot atmospheric gases to penetrate and destroy the internal wing structure, which caused the spacecraft to become unstable and break apart.
After the disaster, Space Shuttle flight operations were suspended for more than two years, as they had been after the Challenger disaster. Construction of the International Space Station (ISS) was put on hold; the station relied entirely on the Russian Roscosmos State Corporation for resupply for 29 months until Shuttle flights resumed with STS-114 and 41 months for crew rotation until STS-121.
Several technical and organizational changes were made, including adding a thorough on-orbit inspection to determine how well the shuttle's thermal protection system had endured the ascent, and keeping a designated rescue mission ready in case irreparable damage was found. Except for one final mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope, subsequent shuttle missions were flown only to the ISS so that the crew could use it as a haven in case damage to the orbiter prevented safe reentry.
Crew
Commander: Rick D. Husband, a U.S. Air Force colonel and mechanical engineer, who piloted a previous shuttle during the first docking with the International Space Station (STS-96).
Pilot: William C. McCool, a U.S. Navy commander.
Payload Commander: Michael P. Anderson, a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel, physicist, and mission specialist who was in charge of the science mission.
Payload Specialist: Ilan Ramon, a colonel in the Israeli Air Force and the first Israeli astronaut.
Mission Specialist: Kalpana Chawla, aerospace engineer who was on her second space mission.
Mission Specialist: David M. Brown, a U.S. Navy captain trained as an aviator and flight surgeon. Brown worked on scientific experiments.
Mission Specialist: Laurel Blair Salton Clark, a U.S. Navy captain and flight surgeon. Clark worked on biological experiments."
From the website for the International Forest of Friendship: (
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""International Forest of Friendship
The International Forest of Friendship is a living, growing memorial to the world history of aviation and aerospace. The Forest was a gift to America on her 200th birthday in 1976 from the City of Atchison, Kansas (the birthplace of Amelia Earhart); The Ninety-Nines (International Organization of Women Pilots), and the Kansas State University, Kansas Forest Service.
Joe Carrigan of Atchison, Kansas, and Fay Gillis Wells, a charter member of The Ninety-Nines and noted journalist, co-chaired the Forest from its inception until their deaths. Their sons, Pat Carrigan and Lin Wells, and families continue their dream of “world friendship through flight.”
The Forest is nestled on a gentle slope overlooking Lake Warnock, on the outskirts of Atchison. It is made up of trees from all fifty states and thirty-six territories and countries around the world where honorees reside. There are trees from George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate, the Bicentennial American Spruce, a tree from Amelia's grandfather's farm, and the Moon Tree grown from a seed taken to the moon by Command Pilot Stuart Roosa on Apollo 14. This latter tree honors the 17 astronauts who gave their lives in America's pioneering of space exploration up to 2001. In 2003 a monument near the tree was dedicated to the seven astronauts lost on the Shuttle Columbia.
Winding through the Forest are pathways honoring those who have, or still are, contributing to all facets of aviation and aerospace. The original path is called Memory Lane and leads to a secluded circle of benches in a grove of trees. All of the Forest's walkways are five feet wide (wheel chair friendly) and embedded in them are granite plaques engraved with the names of over 1,400 honorees. More information about the honorees can be found here.
Included in this illustrious list are markers memorializing such aviation notables as Amelia Earhart, Charles Lindbergh, Jeana Yeager, the Wright Brothers, Sally Ride, Chuck Yeager, General "Jimmy" Doolittle, and Col Eileen M. Collins, the first woman to pilot a shuttle into space. In 1976, Memory Lane was designated as the first National Recreation Trail in Kansas. In 1991, a beautiful gazebo was dedicated to Fay Wells, in honor of her leadership to the Forest. A pond and waterfall honor Joe Carrigan for his many contributions as founding co-chairman. Nearby are the Amelia Earhart Earthworks and the Lake Warnock picnic grounds.
Within the overall theme of "world friendship through flight," annual themes allow for the exploration of specific focus areas such as "discovery though flight," "flying and forests," "flying, forests and the future," and "security and solace through flight."
The Forest is open all year round, from sunrise to sunset.
Wheelchair-friendly pathways wind through the Forest of Friendship."