Remembering space shuttle Columbia
On Jan. 16, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia blasted off for what turned out to be its last flight. It broke up during its return descent on Feb. 1.
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The crew
This undated file photo released by NASA shows STS-107 crew members in their group photo. Left to right, front row, Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, William McCool, back row, David Brown, Laurel Clark, Michael Anderson and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon are shown.
Columbia was destroyed on Feb. 1, 2003, on its return to Earth because of a hole in its wing that allowed in superhot atmospheric gases. The hole was caused by a piece of foam insulation that struck the spacecraft days earlier when it was launched.
Credit: AP Photo/NASA
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