Schools closed and visitors drove from many hours away to commemorate the loss of Space Shuttle Columbia and the STS-107 crew and to celebrate the opening of the Patricia Huffman Smith Columbia Museum in Hemphill. The small East Texas town is where much of the Columbia debris came to rest and recovery efforts were led when the spacecraft broke apart reentering the Earth's atmosphere on Feb. 1, 2003.
Credit: NASA/Carl Martin
[b]Above:[/b] [i]Former Center Director General Howell, museum benefactor Al Smith and Center Director Mike Coats commemorate Columbia and the crew of STS-107 at the memorial service in Hemphill.[/i]
The 2,700 square foot display area in the museum shares the story of space exploration through the lens of Columbia, showcasing photos of the crews she ferried to space and describing the missions they accomplished on large panels that adorn the museum. It also honors two community members who died in the recovery efforts.
"It is a wonderful testimony to what the community here did, to what Columbia was all about," said Gerry Schumann, NASA's lead incident commander during the recovery efforts.
Credit: NASA/Carl Martin
[b]Above:[/b] [i]The family of STS-107 mission specialist Kalpana Chawla donated items belonging to her to the museum.[/i]
Johnson Space Center team members worked closely with the Sabine County Columbia Memorial Committee to outfit the museum with shuttle models, replicas of experiments about Columbia and a variety of other displays. The families of STS-107 crew members Commander Rick Husband, Pilot William McCool, Mission Specialists David Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark, Payload Commander Michael Anderson and Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon, donated personal items from each astronaut. Evelyn Husband Thompson, the wife of Commander Husband, donated a contact lens case that her husband carried on Columbia, which was recovered near Hemphill. Other families, including those of recovery effort pilot Buzz Mier and the Texas Forest Service's Charles Krenek, donated old photographs, flight suits, crew patches, gear owned by their loved ones and items they collected after the tragedy.
The museum also includes a classroom that will be part of the agency's Digital Learning Network, where teachers and students will be able to interact with NASA for educational activities and take advantage of the agency's resources that help advance curiosity and understanding about space.
Credit: NASA/Carl Martin
[b]Above:[/b] [i]U.S. Representative Louie Gohmert (right) and another visitor speak at the opening of the Columbia museum in Hemphill.[/i]
"This tribute will stand as an encouragement to the youth of this community and our state to learn more about space and hopefully steer them to study science, math and engineering," said JSC Director Mike Coats. "Hopefully space flight will be a part of their future."
At a memorial service and ribbon cutting ceremony before visitors entered the museum, NASA officials from around the agency and Hemphill community members reflected upon the bonds built during the recovery efforts.
"No one in our community knew what to expect," said Hemphill City Manager Don Iles. "No one knew that thousands of volunteers and searchers representing hundreds of government agencies would soon descend upon our town. I'll never forget that in the midst of this tragedy, our town did the right thing."
Credit: NASA/Carl Martin
[b]Above:[/b] [i]NASA officials, relatives of the STS-107 crew and visitors attend the ribbon cutting ceremony of the Patricia Huffman Smith Museum.[/i]
General Howell, JSC Director during Columbia also expressed gratitude for the Hemphill community.
"After the Columbia tragedy happened, the Johnson Space Center, like all of you, went through some tough, tough times," Howell said. "Not only did we lose seven dear friends and teammates but we were under an almost daily barrage of criticism from the media and second guessers. However, when we came up to the Piney Woods of Hemphill in East Texas, all we heard from you was 'what can we do to help.' And you came through every, every time."