It brought back memory of the Challenger.  In both cases, a symbolic member was on board – the first teacher in space and the first Israeli astronaut.

According to the Israeli ambassador to US in FNC, Ilan Ramon, the Israeli astronaut is an offspring of Holocaust survivors.  He brought along a drawing from a perished Holocaust child victim to space in the hope of validating the view of life triumphed over immense tragedy.  He also participated in the bombing of Iraq’s nuclear reactor in 1981 which in hindsight was a pivotal event.

I can’t imagine the horror of the family members of the shuttle crew when they heard the news 5 minutes after they were seated in the welcoming party.

This is a national tragedy that will set back the completion of the space station and scientific research for years to come.

May God bless these families.

I had not heard until I just read this and then turned to it on CNN.  Man!

Joey

-- Modified on 2/1/2003 9:44:09 AM

Even barely as a teenager watching it on TV, I still remember vividly the images of Challenger disaster to date. Almost 17 years later, this happened...A beautiful sunny Sat here in beautiful So CA is covered now with sadness.

Any forum is appropriate when a tragedy such as this occurs---my prayers are with their families...

IT didn't appear on cnn.com til almost 3 pm EASTERN time which is ridiculous... I actually read about it here first. It's a tragedy that just makes me feel awful ;(

I wish the best to their friends and family and the entire nation.

A

-- Modified on 2/1/2003 6:22:08 PM

the Holocaust victim carried in the shuttle by the Israeli astronaut.

The human curiosity about space knows no bound.  Even in the depth of great tragedy and hopelessness, the free roaming mind can’t help but imagine what it is like in space looking back at this precious planet we all call home.

Although the artifact is probably lost forever, thanks to technology demanded by the need of the Moon race, the drawing could be viewed by untold number of people in this period of sorrow.

This is not to minimize this tragedy and sorrow of the family members of the crew.  There are no words to express the sudden plunge from pride and joy to shock and sadness experienced by relatives and friends.  However, as jackvance has beautiful stated in his post above and paraphrased here, the most important thing one can do to honor these heroes is to carry forward their aspirations and lifelong fascinations about space exploration.

The photo of the drawing is posted in http://www.instapundit.com along with commentaries from various internet sources.

http://www.nasa.gov/STS-107_crew.pdf

Also, Administrator's statement: http://www.nasa.gov/OKeefe.pdf


-Hoot.

God Bless All of The Astronauts,& their families.

" We gather strength from sadness. And from pain each time
 we die, we learn to live again."

-- Modified on 2/2/2003 3:47:46 AM

May God bless these 7 souls and their loved ones.

"Man foretells afar
The courses of the stars; the very hour
afar
He knows when they shall darken
or grow bright;
Yet doth the eclipse of Sorrow and
of Death
Come unforewarned"


-William Cullen Bryant
    (1794-1878)

For every provider I see this month, I will give 500 to the Columbia family fund..

If we are truly a community here, what bars us from discussing issues important to us, regardless they necessarily be "on topic"?  

To a narrower extent, TER is about the adult entertainment industry. In a larger respect, while we define ourselves by what we do, it is also important to remember who we are and we have lives, thoughts, emotions, hopes, dreams outside the context of the play for pay racket. In both contexts, we are about the business of human relations, in the broad definiton of the word.

If Staff is so willing, perhaps an "off topic" general discussion board is in order. I think it would enhance and enrich the TER experience and make our Internet personas just a touch more human.

and had my sincere thoughts expressed.  On some occasions my judgment failed me.

This board is more open to various topics; though at times, some of the political discourses would get out of hand.