Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster Pt 2: Final Descent | BBC Studios
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- čas přidán 29. 07. 2010
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Part two of six. This clip begins with the astronauts on board preparing for the shuttle's descent to earth and ends with the haunting scenes at NASA's Mission Control at the moment disaster struck. Moving footage from the BBC Horizon programme The Last Flight of the Columbia. Watch more high quality videos on the new BBC Worldwide CZcams channel here: / bbcworldwide
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As a work safety instructor once told me:
“Safety regulations are written in blood.”
Especially when it comes to something as complex and precise as rocket science.
Hard to say this, but if they somehow survived, someone else would suffer their fate after. No other humans died in space after this (so far), therefore their sacrifice was not in vain.
you gave me chills.
@@jamirimaj6880 therefore their sacrifice is a precious, priceless apport that we all honor and respect.
This is deep man.
Can't imagine being the guy doing the com check and not getting a response.
A professional doing his job well.
Are we not entertained? True
The most eerie com check ever, just the silence and hope for a response...
better than being the responder..
@@jordistrybos3438 The first couple likely didn't raise any alarm. Sometimes you just lose comms which is why the "Comm check" is such a repeated phrase throughout film.
I've seen the whole video a few times but didn't notice the flight director crying until now. He still kept it together and did his job. They all did. What a tragic day 😢
I literally just noticed the same thing after watching the footage so many times, that one tear rolling down his left cheek. Makes the emotions and panic he must have been feeling so much more visible. Honestly I can never imagine what must have been going through his head.
2:54 - The grief (and tears) on the flight director's face...absolutely heartbreaking. RIP to the brave Columbia astronauts.
Jesus Christ died on the Cross for our sins, was buried, and then rose again 3 days later, and through Him we can have eternal life.
@@lifewithsy7950 theres no god.
Columbia ❤️ 😇
@@lifewithsy7950 No one asked for your religious spam. Bible thumpers are annoying.
@@nestesaippua Let the man believe, he is not hurting anyone.
The sound of silence truly is deafening.
How many oxymorons you need?
@@TheHmmer4 12
@@necropotence4781 thanks
Couldn't have said it more cliche myself
TheHmmer three
That dreadful silence between the comm checks was terrifying.
not really, they r acting
@@infinitejack2115 fuck you
You know after the second or third one he's repeating to feel like he's doing something even though he and everyone else knows it's hopeless. Whilst he's continuing to try getting a response there's no definite outcome until it's called by the flight director. Horrific.
I'm assuming it's normal to have cameras in there for all launches and whatnot but the zooming in on individual people I guess is part and parcel of the crew's own realisation things have gone horribly wrong. Bearing in mind this is an edited clip there will have been a sudden definitive moment where everyone suddenly goes “Shit...” and that probably hung in the air briefly before they started trying to get a response.
You're welcome and I can see how on the face it seems odd. Similar thing with the Challenger and the world watched in horror as it exploded and bits rained back down to Earth but the narrator was still talking through the schedule in front of him not even realising what had happened.
Eerie as hell made worse because as he was reading on oblivious to it all the cameras switched to live footage of parents watching their daughter die.
My late husband was a quality control engineer @ NASA. I'm so glad he wasn't here to see this. I was crushed by this disaster. RIP.
The controller was obviously very upset, as all of them were, but he kept his composure and directed his crew through all the emergency protocols necessary for such a mishap. In the long version of this you can watch him as he issues his orders very calmly & directly to everyone, quite obviously holding himself steady throughout a storm of emotions. That's command stuff.
Well, yeah, they knew, they had disintegrated and were coming down over North Texas. The finding of debris in the woods, was gruesome. Bits and pieces...... instant death and instant "cremation"....No suffering, just a brutal death that is too fast to really identify.
@@linanicolia1363 I wouldn't count on it.
He knew it was gonna happen. Mission Control knew about the damage to the left wing during the launch. They we’re praying it wouldn’t happen but not surprised when it did.
@@tescheurich It's in the report.
I'd totally agree Dan.
I can't even imagine how that must have felt in mission control. Just a sickening disgusting cold feeling.
Vibhor BIST go watch your childish videos and get out of these ones where we actually take things seriously
2:58 O God
Hollow from the inside...
Mission control knew this shuttle won't Land on earth in 1 peace and they decided not to tell the crew.
Nicholas Johnson • You are exactly right, and to say anything negative or untrue about this tragedy is what’s really despicable.
I remember driving through the middle of Texas on my way to South Dakota and seeing that in the sky not knowing what it was.
For real
Holy shit
@Jett Philips well actually we do care, Jett, because we're watching this video. True, some of us are just here to satisfy some ghoulish death porn kink and get off on watching 7 people die, but some of us are here because of an interest in the space program, or even a personal connection, such as a family member who worked for NASA, or a ranching relative who had debris from the spacecraft on their land.
Carry on, Dave.
@Jett Philips What a genuine piece of shit comment. Stop projecting your lonely insecurities and lack of attention on other people.
Texas Red hmmm that was very particular about the kink think Texas red . Sounds like you may have the ghoulish death kink
This is the risk each astronaut knows when you explore the unknown in space. Rest in peace you brave heroes.
They always know but hope for the best. They also know, their survival depends on a lot of people, who have to do their work with diligence. Overlook nothing and never take chances......
All fake; don’t worry here
Except like the Challenger crew before them, the Columbia astronauts trusted NASA to do everything necessary to put safety first, to mitigate the risks. Space travel is dangerous even with that, and that’s what they sign up knowing. But these two catastrophes shouldn’t have happened.
With Challenger, the press had been mocking NASA regarding repeated delays of the missions, including the last one. I just watched a video of CNN covering Challenger live, and the CNN anchor started to say that the Challenger mission was finally underway after so many delays (something like “more delays than they’d like us to mention”) when Challenger exploded, cutting the CNN anchor’s sentence short as he went silent; clearly he was trying, like everyone else, to figure out what he’d just seen. It was these press reports about the Shuttle not flying with the regularity that had originally been the Shuttle designers’ intent that led NASA to disregard the engineers’ warning that it was too cold to launch on Jan 28, 1986.
With Columbia, it was a larger-than-usual chunk of foam hitting in perhaps the worst spot it could have. A known issue that was manageable *if* they’d created some routine procedures both before and after launches. Procedures that were put into place after Columbia was lost. On the days after Columbia’s launch, requests were made by some NASA employees to get some telescope time that would let them see the underbelly of the Shuttle in orbit, to check for damage. The woman at NASA, whose name I’ve forgotten, who was in the position to approve or deny the request they wanted to use turned down the request, said no because, “if there is damage to the heat shield on the wing, there’s nothing we can do do about it.”
The damage to Apollo 13 from that explosion was huge, it was when all the computers aboard the lunar module & capsule had about as much capacity as a scientific calculator used in the 90s by people studying mathematics in college, and the accident occurred much farther from the safety of Earth than Columbia was (obviously). Yet Gene Kranz said, “failure is not an option” when it came to getting those three astronauts back alive, and he and his team did so. So the idea that some astronauts in Low Earth Orbit couldn’t be saved if Columbia had a “fatal wound” was utter bs. It wouldn’t have been easy, but it was possible.
@@paradoxical_tacoMonday morning quarter back...ok.
It's ironic, and hard to believe, that there haven't been any lost in space yet.
This is the first time I see the tears on the flight directors face. I could never see it in the grainy videos posted online. Soooo sad.
CZcams recommends part 2..... will wait another 10 years for part 1 to be recommended
Edit: was not expecting this to get nearly 10k likes.... I hope it cheered you up after watching such a sad video ☹️RIP to those brave astronauts x
I can't find any other part but this part of whatever series this is. Lol I want to see more and this is the only one. 😂😂
@Donald Trump Because it's accurate.
Same
To be fair, the ending is the most interesting part
@@Witchygirl22 ANYWAY BY WATCHING THIS VIDEO WE ALL WILL GET EMOTIONAL💯❤🤞
They were not just 7 people - they were seven ingenious minds, that we get from millions of people; they were not just seven people, they were billions of hopeful hearts too.
Poetry & Prose. What??
Who video'ed the burning and explosions and why do they have twins (all of them)
Poetry & Prose. No, they were just 7 people.
There was even an Indian in that
Yes they were seven masterminds among millions, but still seven people and their life wasn't more important than mine, yours or the billions outside.
This is just heart-rending to watch. They have been gone for years but when I watch this, the emotions come flooding back. RIP Columbia astronauts. We won't forget the sacrifice you made.
And many of the crew members had their families watching😢
I live in Central Florida and we could see each launch from our front yard. That morning when Columbia was flying back in, I was listening to the "live" commentary from our local TV station when a veteran reporter who covered all the launches came on to say: "Uh, oh no..." I could hear it in his voice. Instantly made me sick to my stomach. I knew he knew, even before they announced it. Much respect for the folks who fly into space.
Would that be WESH-2 by any chance? Cuz their coverage of the disaster is on their CZcams channel. The concern and shock you hear in Dan Billow’s voice as the situation sets in for him. Many of the viewers didn’t grasp the severity of the situation until the videos were being shown, but you can tell Dan knew almost instantly that the chances of any of the crew surviving was near zero, even though he couldn’t report that without confirmation. A true journalist, watching that coverage gave me mad respect for him.
And here we are, year 2020 dealing with flat brainers. Im sure they'll call this cgi or the astronauts who died in this video are paid actors. What a mess.
The most disappointing thing about a lot of humans, is that they see opinions as facts and they don’t fully understand what a fact exactly is. E.g. the climate crisis, there is so much data, that indicates that we’re influencing the climate in a very negative way, however an huge amount of people still aren’t convinced and totally not motivated to act. I’m sorry to comment this, but some people are just to unintelligent to have power, because due to the democracy the majority has a lot of power and if the majority makes decisions purely based on emotions and there opinions and ignores all the facts, than it’s a very horrible thing.
Nevertheless I do believe, that democracy is the best ideology at the moment, because communism and other ideologies give to much power to the government or to one (with a monarchy e.g.).
@@tylert7945 Lol
Cosmin Grigore too real? Or...
Tyler T The evidence against e.g. Neil Armstrong walking on the moon is very weak, but still you are convinced and act like there is dense prove... To paraphrase another famous Neil: “It is easier to actually go to the moon, than to fake all of this.” An easy rule is that a lie can’t survive when there’re a lot of people involved (who know the truth). There will always be people who can’t handle the guilt or have enough integrity and that ruins such a big scale lie. Even when they’re pressured.
Tyler T And seriously, Wikipedia? That only weakens your statement (as everyone can write something over there).
The atmosphere in that room is paralysing, can't even imagine whats going through their minds. Being the only safety net those guys had.
and many staff in this vid would have probably know the astronauts personally too. totally gut wrenching moment.
You worried about the people in the room. What about the astronauts
@@greer8288 uh... because they're already dead. Nothing more you can do. Lol.
@Bounze That minute was probably horrifying. Alarms going off, power failing, shuttle violently shaking. NASA not responding on comms as you try to report what's happening.
I imagine the shuttle not instantly exploding, but breaking up slowly over the course of several seconds.
I get emotional thinking about it, and especially watching the people in flight control as their demeanor changed once the knew what they lost the shuttle.
It's heartbreaking that pioneers sometimes pay the ultimate price. We acknowledge their sacrifice and we are inspired by their bravery.
we are now so used to see rockets or shuttle going into space (well no shuttle anymore) that we forget sometimes that they are taking off by igniting something like a bomb and they come back in a bubble surrounded by something like liquid fire.
Heartbreaking...RIP to the Astronauts, and my heart goes out to Mission Control and the families.
A red rose for every astronaut and everybody in Mission Control. 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹😢
This is so heartbreaking. Seeing their last moments, everyone was sweating and anxious. They tried to get a response, but they were gone. That man crying in the end, and seeing the remains disintegrating in the sky... this is extremely sad.
Whatever. NASA refused to even let another satellite look at the Shuttle to survey possible damage during liftoff. The crew was dead after takeoff thanks to institutional willing blindness after liftoff.
Isla D'GIACOMA ,
Ok
@@MrEnvirocat It was confirmed that the destruction was caused during the transition from stratosphere to orbit. If I recall correctly, a piece of insulation of the size of a suitcase fell out of the hull of the shuttle and hit one of the wings, creating a small hole in the wing. During re-entry, the heat and pressure increased the dimensions of the hole, from which the disintegration followed to the main body of the shuttle.
I might be wrong with some details, it has been some time since I researched it so feel free to correct me.
@@HonzzaDoll You're right. There is a full report available that I found two years ago because I wanted to know if the astronauts were concious something was going horribly wrong and how they had died; and it turns out there's still a minute of flight after the comms interrupted and the astronauts were conscious it was happening. Thankfully they were all killed quickly when the cabin was torn apart by the aerodynamic forces, breaking their necks and spines almost instantly. A worse fate bad happened to the ones in Challenger. There at least 3 were alive up until the 300 kmh crash against the ocean, since they were found to have activated oxygen support and the commands dir the spacecraft had been switched to manual. Probably the other 4 were alive as well but unconscious. Nothing to be done anyway since the command capsule had no parachutes 🙁
They should be here, with us, watching the SpaceX demo
@120starter astronauts really love what they do and would support the demo
@@pantsu-sama8311 Exactly
They are from heaven watching
@Dwells Rivals? This isn't the Cold War.
Dwells u live under a rock?
I've seen parts of this video many times before but I never noticed the Flight Director wiping a tear from his cheek before now. Imagine how he must have felt right then.
Is it the face of a man who knew the military had offered free access to imaging technology which could have clearly assessed the damage to the wing, allowing a rescue plan to be formulated?
Given the gross arrogance of NASA displayed in the Challenger disaster, it wouldn't surprise me.
My mom said that "two died, one is still alive", meaning Challenger, Columbia, and Discovery. It struck me silent that she referred to them like living creatures. My mom passed away this Christmas, and I still hear it.
Don't know what to say ........................hurts
Atlantis, Discovery and Endeavour all survived their missions (and the prototype Enterprise too).
BLESS HER-IN HEAVEN WITH HER LOVED ONES
Im sorry for your loss, she is now in a better place watching over you 🕊️
As a Floridian & a lifelong Space Coast girl, I can tell you that your mom had it right, really, speaking of the shuttles as though they were living creatures. I think that's how many of us who watched their missions all our lives thought of them, too. Challenger & Columbia's losses were, are, devastating & it's comforting to know that our beautiful Discovery, Endeavor, and Atlantis are still with us. All five are deeply loved here on the Space Coast.
RIP Kalpana Chawla: The first woman of Indian origin to go into space. She has inspired tons of Indians. Massive Respect.
Edit: The reply section of this comment gave me a seizure istg
@@Aryan_Kashyap you're very cruel
@@adwaitab.3622 how is that cruel?
Amelie Lopez OMFGGG...The entire comment section is mourning for their loss...I pointed out a specific woman because she was of very much importance to my country and really Made space travel seem like a possible thing for many of us...That’s what I’m saying. Not everyone must be knowing her here that’s why i said. Chill dude
@@KristenHammerback-pk5wy Your reply escalated from 'What about the other astronauts' to the stupid ol' 'Go back to your country' real quick. Also remember, if you live in America and ain't a native, you yourself don't belong to that country so you have not right to tell another dude to not immigrate. Also, she said she respects Kalpana Chawala because she has inspired many Indians and that's true, if somebody with the same race/origin as another person does something amazing, the other person would feel proud and inspired. And just because she said she respects Kalpana Chawala doesn't mean she doesn't respect the others who died that day. Stop being offended by everything. Also, 'if you hate us so much', that's what you are saying? It looks like you are the one hating.
@@KristenHammerback-pk5wy lol you are sickk
omg that silence between the com check was so depressing
RIP legends!
What else could they do? live in space forever on a shuttle with depleting fuel and no food or water to conserve them for long times? They were also travelling at 18 times the speed of sound and were around 207 thousand kilometres above the ground.
@Frank Castle sadly they didn't know there was an issue until they were already descending to earth.
@Frank Castle bro they were already entering the orbit and high temperatures started damaging the shuttle through the hole. They couldn't just pull up while going thousands of miles per hour downwards through the atmosphere.
@@haych5491 207 km*
@@massimo4683 exaggeration
They knew about the tile damage. The look on their faces as soon as those temp sensors failed, they knew it was over. Heartbreaking.
Yep, I think the commander aboard the shuttle was concerned too. These people are all trained to remain calm at all times.
I still remember watching this video 13 years back when I was so highly interested in knowing about space shuttles. This still saddens me because so many astronauts passed away in this space shuttle. Remembered as the most disastrous event ever.
CZcams algorithm : let's see what can we recommend before demo flight ..........
It went well!!!
wraithM17 hopefully docking and atmospheric re-entry goes well also 🙏
Did spaceX's flight go well? I missed the stream😭
@@aras4031 yep
@@aras4031 flawlessly
The tears streaming down his face really hit me...what a horrible horrible accident to witness...I pray that we will never ever have to witness something like this again...
tears of joy
like cops killing black people?
@@dustywtr6843 who knows. do u know him ?
It was a disaster for all mankind.
@@brette6854 what a stupid comment. 🤦♂️
18 yrs.... those memories ingrained.
Salute to this brave crew. RIP
I was getting ready for work and had been listening to the broadcast. The announcers kept waiting for word that the shuttle entered the earth’s atmosphere safe and sound. There was nothing. I remember saying to myself “they didn’t make it”. My heart sank. When I watched the Challenger explosion, I really didn’t understand what just happened before my eyes, as a third grader. The Columbia disaster literally took my breath away. I had to call in sick from work and grieve with the families. Since 9/11, I just was in a state of shock and grief. For some reason, it all hit me at the moment and I was inconsolable. 🕊
“Columbia, Houston, UHF com check,” these words seemingly echo.
No acting necessary.... you knew it.
dkchen yeah..
Can you explain me what those words mean? please
@@thanhho8737 and what do they mean by Ultra High Frequency Com
@@LthiagoR they use UHF channel radio communication
Tears rolled down flight director's cheeks...
This explains how huge and painful that loss was
They lost the shuttle.they lost the crew
They lost much that day
Very tragic
I bet you two are the biggest vajayjays, and probably have been bitched out multiple times by bullies in real life... how’s it feel? 😉
Richard Rykard Yes because only pussies would weep at the loss of human life.
Richard Rykard Have a heart man.
My husband, children and I made a special trip from Michigan to Florida to watch the Columbia lift off. It was a gorgeous day. We were absolutely heartbroken when Columbia and crew were lost on re-entry.
So tragic seven brave people and one beautiful ship lost but never to be forgotten.
Robert L Crippen "...she flew all her missions exceptionally well. She was a proud old bird. I know she did her best to bring her crew home safely, just as she had done twenty seven times before. However, her mortal wound was just too great."
columbia is old and an antique , it is not space worthy but US forced to use it since US have no other manned launch
Bruh imagine being mission control. Damn how can you sleep after that.
I think it’s scarier being in the space shuttle, knowing you’re going to die
@@carahughes257 Can't have feelings once your dead
Where was they coming back from?
@@Rachie-nj3oi the ISS, international space station I guess
@@simo6639 OK thanks 👍
The Flight Director...that poor man. It was not his fault.
Peter Hutchinson He knew all about it. It happened on launch two weeks earlier.
Peter Hutchinson Its up to the mission manager. He is the flight director for the orbiter.
Peter Hutchinson The astronauts were not equipped for performing a space walk on this flight.
Dennis S Each mission carried a minumum of two suits. Two crewman are trained for EVA every flight for other reasons including payload bay doors not closing, ET doors under the orbiter not closing and not being able to stow the KU-Band antenna. On top of that an EVA tool kit flies in the payload bay every flight as well. Many of the stainless steel EVA tools were recovered after the accident.
jrockett73
I guess what I was trying to imply was based on Story Musgrave's suggested procedure where they could hook one astronaut to a tether attached to a hook in the cargo bay then the tethered astronaut could have swung the other spacewalker over the edge of the left wing from the left side of the cargo bay also tethered for the inspection of the wing
However former astronaut Richard Mullane claimed It would be impossible to do a walk and maneuver yourself underneath the belly of the space shuttle to do any type of inspection or repair,”
Nasa engineers were concerned further damage could be done by an astronaut colliding with the wing because the astronaut had no way to maneuver himself
I took that to mean that the astronauts were not equipped to leave the shuttle cargo bay area for any excursions but for cargo bay work or issues and could not perform a spacewalk totally free from the shuttle and maneuver because they were not equipped with a fully self contained MMU unit
Their procedure is explained here
www.nbcnews.com/id/3077560/ns/technology_and_science-space/t/columbia-spacewalk-plan-debated/
It didn't explode. That's a major error. It ripped apart from the heat and pressure the atmosphere put on its parts. It never blew up.
The way he (commission control)was rubbing his face and nose prior to losing communication, he knew there was going to be trouble
Exactly, i was about to make the same comment. It shows NASA knew what the problem was, they knew if something would go wrong, it would be that!
My father worked at NASA. He told me that during takeoff a small piece of the ablative heat shield fell off shuttle Columbia, which caused the shuttle to overheat and eventually explode in reentry. The rupture of the black ablative heat shield had happened many times in previous shuttle launches, and even though it is very unsafe, NASA chose to go along with the reentry process every time. This time however it proved fatal. Just because something has worked before even when it is dangerous, does not mean it will work every time. RIP Columbia crew.
Could they have done anything to save the shuttle, knowing what had happened on take-off?
@@ajs41Yes, there was a plan. Costly, but possible. Engineers knew how to do it, but top brass preferred to play the blame game and refused to implement it.
Actually a foam hit the shuttle at 700-800 Km/hr speed that created a hole which on rentry became bigger and during the descent it turned into pieces...
Really? Your father works at NASA? He told you that, or you just read it on numerous reports?
Dear God....that is the most devestating silence I have ever heard in my life. Literally made me cry.
They(nasa) already know abt this dissaster!
RandomCrap . yep
RandomCrap the flight director should be in prison
@@vrxcld5014 The FD was only the FD on duty at the time. And NASA reviewed the risks, they knew there was a distinct possibility that the chunk of insulation had blown through the port wing, they gave the FD the go-ahead to bring them down. There was no possibility of launching a rescue mission. They could die in space when their O2 supply ran out, or they could die attempting to return home. NASA, as an agency, decided to bring them down without telling them there could be a problem. They were dead if they stayed in space, but there was a slim chance they could land safely. The FD on duty was in touch with then-NASA Administrator Charles O'Keefe all morning before the de-orbit burn.
RandomCrap • Same here..same here.😢
It's heartbreaking to see mission control's reactions. Especially the woman's expression, because you can see it clearly on her face that she's realizing that the astronauts, people she knew & worked with, are probably and most likely dead. 😭
I remember having a coffee out side and seeing the debris plume and feeling what happened. Started crying. RIP out astronaut heros.
I was too young to under the heaviness of the situation. But i grew up in Houston and space was always so cool to me. After I heard about this disaster many years later (it happened 5 days before my 5th birthday) I was shocked at just how tragic it all was. All 7 people died, these incredibly smart people who should still be here aren’t anymore. It’s just heartbreaking.
Such a sad event. They were almost home :(
Yea,very sad
This is very scary n yet they still go
Unfortunately, with space travel being so hazardous, no astronout is "nearly home" until their feet are firmly back on Mother Earth.
that goes to show Space is Very Dangerous it's nothing to play with 😢
@@angelajackson4248 it wasn't space.. Its the speed these shuttles endure on re entry .. There was a hole in the left wing heat shield that caused this to happen.
Who is here after the successful launch of SpaceX in 2020?
Mee
Im here
I am completely engulfed by space flight rn.
meeeee
Me lol
I honestly think they knew what was coming, once there was a loss of high temp sensors on one side...they knew there was no way to survive re-entry without heat shields
those hyd return temp transducers for the l aileron were right in the region of the earlier tile strike. at that point they knew, and i can only imagine they were praying.
Sad part is a piece of foam caused all of it.
@@weseethetruth158 how🤔😐
@@spidyv2651 somehow it damaged the high temp reflective panels needed for reentry.
Not necessarily. Columbia was lost at that point but the Aeromedical autopsy indicated some or all of the crew could have survived with a few minor modifications. Cabin acceleration never exceeded 7G till impact, which is not enough to black out a conditioned aviator. Additionally they still had a heat shield, the cabin heat shield was not compromised and if the cabin had self-stabilized aerodynamically like the Challenger did on breakup, it would have still presented the heat shield to the relative wind. However it broke apart without trailing behind the miles of wiring like Challenger did so tumbled, and presented the unshielded rear bulkhead. The crew were already dead from explosive decompression but if the switches had been redesigned they would have been able to operate the landing checklist fully suited and that would not have been an issue. You can see from the footage that although they have their pressure suits on they have visors up and gloves off. I have no idea who thought that was a good procedure.
You can even see the flight director crying at 2:54, he looks completely devastated already.
He knew, and was friends with, all of the crew in the mission. It was a personal loss for him.
He lost a bet
Damn, that is just so sad, after watching them smiling and everything. Excitement of finally landing and going home turned to tragedy. RIP to all the crew :(
rene kenshin and there was my sis kalpana chawala
Vikram Dan Barath she was your sister? I’m so sorry for your loss.
They were just moments from landing. I watched the whole thing unfold on TV that cold Saturday morning in February and it was such a weird feeling when you slowly realized what may have been happening. Then when you see the video of the three “pieces” lighting up the sky, the cold realization hit home, that they were not coming home.
@@gomphrena-beautifulflower-8043 they are coming home after all..afterlife that is
amerhuzairy100 • That’s right, that’s my belief. As long as they knew Jesus.
1:57 he already knows it's over.
Today marks 20 years since the disaster. RIP to the crew of Columbia. Godspeed.
I still remember that day. I was extremely sad as I considered Kalpana Chawla a role model for us Indians and to lose her in this manner was very sickening.
@Just Dab Indians did. She was a national celebrity
@Just Dab If Indians leave NASA, it will stop working. Period
@@shantanu4455 no dumbass. Stop this bullshit. You're making us Indians look idiot.
@@singhdeep744 stfu bitch! That means ur a idiot!!
@Joel Fernandes you didn't go to school ?
They died doing what they loved.. Her smile before the explosion is very heartbreaking :(
what smile?
@@madhumalarilamaran4730 thnx
@@aktarzaman4013 K.C's smile...while waving at the camera
Right .. 😊😊😊🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿
There was no explosion the way BBC is dramatizing the disaster. The shuttle broke apart after it lost control due to the left wing either being severely damaged by that point or coming off completely. After the shuttle began tumbling through the air, it began to separate and break apart. It didn’t explode like this clip claims.
I have a very vivid memory of this day, I was 2 weeks from turning 11 years old. I remember watching the news coverage afterwards on my little portable Sony TV in the back seat of my dad’s pickup on the hour drive down to my uncle’s house to see my cousins.
This year marks the tragic 20th year of Columbia tragedy. The memory hunts Indians, they lost her great daughter Kalpana. RIP 7 great heroes.
Could you imagine their families? so excited to see them, and hear about their experience, only for them to have an accident 22 minutes before arriving home. I can’t imagine.
I really feel so upset that the astronauts never made it 😞...their's family looking forward to see them...and that happened 😢....
Same as with the Challenger disaster in 1986. They were lost at 73 seconds after liftoff. I was watching when this happened with Columbia too. (Jan Griffiths).
I read Rick Husband’s wife’s book about her husband’s career. Her and their children posed for a photo by the countdown clock without knowing the disaster had already happened. I can’t imagine the pain when they found out. The book is fascinating but heartbreaking. It’s called High Calling.
Kalpana chawla will always remain alive...the girl who had shown...a woman knows to cook and also knows to fly ..
@@lizkinnear8570 you never know... maybe they were all very difficult, egotistical people and their families were actually glad they all died in horrible agony? i dunno.... just thinking out loud
Interesting sense of humor you have algorithm, recommending this just a day before a semi-historic manned NASA rocket launch...
this is cause ppl were looking for it
And now it's got postponed...
they postponed it to Saturday because of bad weather conditions, i'm glad they did because this could've been like the Challenger 2.0
@@loserqt3480 could have not
Because its the reason USA's space launchs were cancelled, until now.
This was such a tragedy but it's an absolute miracle no one on the ground died.
21 years ago , India lost her most inspiring daughter. RIP Kalpana, every year I miss you. I was just 10 then, I cried for 10 straight days as my heart was aching, despite even knowing what space actually is or who Kalpana ji was. My respects to the all 7 astronauts, and their families. Om shanti
Thank you Kalpana Mam . You made us proud. Always my ideal
It's "idol" u dumbass
@@hypnoticmusicsp so you cant genuinely correct him ??
@@tiger1995grvr nope.
@@hypnoticmusicsp stfu look at your punctuations first ,dumbass.
@@hypnoticmusicsp "Nope" is usually used in spoken answers and how come you are not aware of it?
The flight director was shaking in his boots you could see it.
Yes he knew what was in store long before it happened. You can see that.
Texass
If you look closely, he is crying. But no, he didnt know before they went radio silent.
@@paulyflyer8154 er... what are you talking about? How would they have known that before it happened?
@@scerpalman because they knew the wing had been damaged by the debri during take off
Still incredible that a foam strike at several hundred mph was (apparently) not considered a potential disaster for the shuttle.
RIP to all the astronauts on that rocket. And this incident always brings me to tear cz Kalpana Chawla was my hero and she is the reason I gained a lot of interest in space and now I'm just amazed by this space world, I too wanna contribute in this field. Once again may all these astronauts RIP😭🙏💐
"Lock the doors"
NASA's worst nightmare just realized..
what do they mean by lock the doors?
@@dark_shadow_wolf5048 That means the fit hit the shan..
All communication to remain inside the room.
No communication with the outside world.
Document all action prior and up to LOS
Record everything.
Secure backup data..
Say a few prayers..
@@babyshakya3707 How incredibly disrespectful of you.
@@babyshakya3707 you and your kind are weird but fascinating creatures of this world
@@babyshakya3707 this is disgusting.
“Lock the doors” that really hits me
Me too!
what was he talking about though? i didn't understand that
@@melissamccrary8282 whenever an incident happens they have to shut down everything because it's now under investigation and evidence. That is the protocol. Nobody leaves the room and nobody enters. all doors have to be locked, nobody can touch the computers, get on phones, etc... Evidence evidence evidence
@@KittyKatt69 Thank you for explaining, I also had no idea what was that meant to mean
@@KittyKatt69thank you for explaination
I was watching this on TV in school when it happened. It was tough to watch, I can’t even imagine what the people in mission control were feeling. That shot of the flight director burying his face in his hands is heartbreaking.
The same thing almost happened to the crew of STS-27 in 1988. There had been a debris strike on the right wing and the astronauts had observed extensive tile damage with the camera from the robot arm. They called in a report to Houston and their report was dismissed. Hoot Gibson commanded the flight. Hoot said if he started to see the elevons deflect in different directions on reentry, he would know the end was near. He planned to get on the mic and tell Houston exactly what they could do with their dismissal of his tile damage report. The loss of another orbiter so soon after Challenger would have ended the shuttle program.
“Lock the doors”.
So sad.
why did he said that
It is explained in part 3
I might be wrong but I think they say lock the doors to keep everyone in so that if one of the mission control workers did make the fatal mistake it makes it extremely hard to cover up
Sarah Gardiner
: Press.
@@nathanleveille3108 You are wrong. NASA don't do cover-ups.
They were minutes from being back home, devastating
They were never eveb close to home. Fucked from the very beginning.
Even if they Reached the Ground a single minute is enough for an Explosion and get killed before they walk out.
@@Gonken88 The "fucked" happened when they were launching
20 years later, rest in peace heroes
Columbia didn't "Blow-up," it "Broke-up" at 18 times the speed of sound! Columbia was my last Shuttle to work on in Palmdale during mod and refit. Test Quality Engineer.
Just like Challenger broke up. Probably why no one is interested in riding a winged space plane up to Mach 18 these days.
Those astronauts weren't paid actor's they where paid heroes.
Those fricking flat earthers think they died for nothing because the shuttle is fake
@@tymccormick2512
Nobody died because nobody was on a "space shuttle". And yes, the Earth is still Flat.
@@danielmconnolly7 Please to god tell me your joking
@@danielmconnolly7 pure claims zero evidence. Typical flat earther
@@raymondaninipot2994
Hi Ray,
There is tons of evidence if you would take the time to look into it. I'll give you a head start.
Link here: 👇
czcams.com/play/PLMupjmxFKflM4BB33CEklx4SrsOBL1KqG.html
Cant imagine what went through the flight director's mind after this. Surely a part of his soul died that day.
We should have taken warnings about the heat shield more seriously qould be my guess
Lord have mercy on us
6 horcruxes to go then
I'll bet he knew immediately
nope. there was none to lived till then to have died. all that were mere reflexes in light of the monstrosity he and the powers that be had to carry everyday with the knowledge of knowing he was gambling with lives every time he sent the columbia spacecraft on an mission.
The flight director’s face, then the tears, then everyone else’s expressions and the deafening silence.. heartbreaking
This group of brave, intelligent people and many others, gave their lives in pursuit of space exploration, science and technology. Look where we are now, we have flat earthers and space deniers walking around the Earth, oblivious of how they are disrespecting the memories and sacrifices that these Astronauts did for humanity. Shame on all of them!
"Columbia, Houston, UHF Comm, Check"
This is heartbreaking!
After the second no reply, they all knew the crew were dead.
Who was saying 'UHF comm check'?
Abhijeet Patil ...The man wearing grey shirt....sitting at the ryt syd of the flight director..
@@prerna724 got it 😊 thanks
😭
When i see a grown man cry... I get speechless 💔
+Jay Briggs Grown men do cry. its a sign of a real man
+Jay Briggs Yeah the sight of LeRoy Cain in tears is powerful and moving. His upset was probably worse given he will have known there was a good chance he would be sending the crew to their deaths when he directed them for home. But he had no choice. It was either that or they slowly suffocate and die in terror unable to fly home. You can only imagine the inner torment he must have gone through knowing that. Yet he stayed at his post and remained professional to the end. In my eyes he is another hero of that tragic flight.
+KennnnnnyTucky Amen!
😂😂😂
Jay Briggs ya some time if a man cannot do something for his family in that situation can makes cry
So very sad. So brave. These guys put their lives on the line... everyone is/was proud of you. Bless you all...
I never watched any space shuttle coverage again after Challenger. I was too traumatized to go through that again.
“lock the doors”, three simple words, yet so devastatingly powerful. I remember that day, as I remember the Challenger back in 1986. No words, just shock with sadness.
sorry for the dumb question, but what did they mean by ‘lock the doors’?
@@theHoax100 it’s government protocol.. no one is allowed in or out while they investigate records. No cell phone calls In or out either.
I remember the man on the moon expedition in 1969 which was exciting, also to see both Space shuttle disasters was extremely powerful viewing. RIP
That silence.... my goodness. Absolutely chilling. Thats terrible.
Can't hear it over the sound of burning flesh
It's horrible. What a horrible way to die. But at the very least, it was over for those poor souls. I doubt any of those guys in mission control ever really got over it
This is tearing me up seeing the space shuttle blast like anything and that dead bodies and the broken parts fall down. RIP to all astronauts 😢😢😭
I remember when this happened. I was 11 and we were visiting my parents. I was interested in space since I was a small boy. It was a sunny and cold afternoon in Bulgaria. I was next to my dad and we were watching tv. He put on the news minutes before the crash and they were doing a live coverage of the landing. My dad wanted to change the channel as he's not that interested in space stuff. I wanted to watch, so we watched.
When the shuttle broke up, I didn't really know what happened, but I knew something was wrong. I asked my dad "Dad, what's happening?" I didn't know about Challenger, or Apollo 1 back then...
My dad turned off the tv, gave me a hug and said "They didn't make it son... those people have very dangerous jobs and sometimes accidents can happen. They are heroes!"
May the crew rest in peace!
Something about watching flight and space disasters always brings me to tears. A tragic loss of human life.
Too bad we didn't send soy protein instead ehh
Maybe because when the disasters happen, the people are so, so far away, and so isolated and alone.
Hi she rebirth now in Sri Lanka as a little boy, he just 3 years old, he said he was astronaut had an accident, also he can speak English, and Hindi, no one can speak English or Hindi in his family.. Please see this video czcams.com/video/y3K5oOFv-sM/video.html
@@remo687 Yeah I think thats the reason as ships sinking in the deep ocean invoke the same emotions and the main factor they share is the total isolation and helplessness of the victims as their fate is out of their control.
Dear God, you are a beautiful man.
"Lock the doors"....
You never want to hear that. That's protocol for when the worst happens.😥
time stamp?
@@IM26C4UU 3:11
what does it means? what doors??
@@notsokomal3146 It just means the doors to the mission control room. That way no one is allowed in or out.
@@notsokomal3146 It meant to preserve the evidence, everyone in the room is a witness, It is basically a crime scene now.
I remember hearing about this. and Challenger. I still cry. It was so sad that so many lives were lost
2:37 It’s been 20 years and it still gets to me. 😢 I was in high school and woke up early that Saturday morning to watch the landing. When comms went out and never came back, you just had a sinking feeling, but still had hope that they were going to be ok.
Today 15 years competed but when I watch this I have still tears 😭 in my eyes
we always love you kalpana ..you are inspiration for all over the world,and most INDIA,you are great..
Pratik Mogal i
This comment gave me a tear
clopez232 hi
Hello Pratik
India dint pay anything to put Kalpana up there. She's American btw
The space shuttle actually was a pain in the ass. When it came back BANG the whole state of Florida heard it… it sounded like a gun went off every single time in re entered the atmosphere.
Which was not very often.
@@Melody615199999 it still sucks that Obama pawned it off though.
@@salvatorecorleone1008 Actually, it was the Bush administration that initiated the budget cuts that saw the end of the space shuttle program.
Please get your facts straight.
Poor souls. So close to home but then never getting there. Thank you for your service and sacrifice.
And people in my school, even teachers, don’t know what this is.
Really? Wow, that is sad.
Geez. That's public school for ya these days! Propaganda & brainwashing factories that leave young people having to actively educate themselves on their own.
Meh it’s not really that important
@@ziyaaddhorat not really that important huh? 7 brilliant people with 7 ingenious minds perishing in such a fatal accident is a simple meh!?
Tejas Sabnis exactly, it’s just 7. There are much more important things going on in the world that this mission.
I felt a painful feeling of emptiness just by watching at their faces when they didn't get answers from the Shuttle. I think we can barely imagine what it meant to them and to everyone in that office to lose all of those people, it must have been the worst feeling one can experience...
Io penso agli astronauti se si sono accorti che stavano morendo
painful feeling ? you obviously have no real life tragedy if a snippet of youtube bring you down mentally
No, the worst feeling was the one the astronauts had just before their bodies were ripped apart.
2:37 that expression says it all. loosing friends that were like family. just broken inside
I remember this like yesterday and where I was at. I know people saying the challenger was awful (and it was) but I was tired of people saying that in such a way that it came off to diminish this Columbia loss. RIP and prayers.
Once you're in reentry, burning through the atmosphere, you're completely helpless, at the mercy of whatever happens. If something goes wrong, there's no mission abort, no Plan B, no rescue, no countermeasures, and no time to fix anything. There is only one way to go, and nothing to do but wait. I can't imagine a more hopeless situation.
NASA knew they weren't coming back soon after they launched. They just didn't tell the crew or the public. The time for rescue or fixing things was 16 days before reentry - when NASA first knew.
McCool apparently activated the APUs after the left wing was already gone, trying to get pitch authority back after the main HYD system instantly bled out. He fought it right up till death, like Reznik on Challenger.
@@kristinstrickland1038 Nonsense.
They died doing what they loved RIP may they fly through the stars forever
U mean they love by burning
Arbaz Khan, the comment clearly says “doing”
"Lock the doors".....sent shivers down my spine
"GC? Flight? "GC? Flight" "Flight? GC" "Lock the doors" "Copy"
Absolutely the most sobering verbal exchange here for me.
Heartbreaking. Can't imagine how it must feel in the control room to pick up abnormal readings, then silence and the realisation of what happened
Pretty sure they went home to family. What about the astronauts
@@greer8288 Yes went home to their family's haunted forever, knowing that a part of themselves will be forever lost. The Astronauts are all dead, nothing we can do about. It's not just black and white, think more deeply about stuff.
Everybody but the astronauts knew they were fucked from the getgo. It was all a charade and hoping for a miracle.
They were actually doomed 83 seconds into liftoff but didn't know it. But NASA probably knew it. But did not tell the crew or family. This was an ongoing, long standing problem but they choose to keep flying over a known safety issue. NASA really does not care about people... flying come first. there's something inherently WRONG regarding the leadership in this country. NASA is a part of the government its NOT a part of the private sector. Perhaps future exploration will be different? We'll see.