Bringing Columbia Home
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On February 1, 2003, Columbia disintegrated on reentry before the nation's eyes, and all seven astronauts aboard were lost. Author Mike Leinbach, Launch Director of the space shuttle program at NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center was a key leader in the search and recovery effort as NASA, FEMA, the FBI, the US Forest Service, and dozens more federal, state, and local agencies combed rural east Texas for every piece of the shuttle they could find. Assisted by hundreds of volunteers, it would become the largest ground search operation in US history. Leinbach shares the deeply personal stories that emerged as NASA employees looked for lost colleagues and searchers overcame immense physical, logistical, and emotional challenges to bring home the remains of the crew and nearly 40 percent of shuttle, an effort that was instrumental in piecing together what happened so the shuttle program could return to flight and complete the International Space Station.
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I wasn't aware of the magnitude of the tragedy at the time, however, I vividly remember the loss of the Columbia crew back in 2003. Despite having memories of the tributes and magazine covers, I've never actually read about the accident in my adult life.
Less about the space mission itself or the lives of the crew members, Bringing Home Columbia focuses mostly on the recovery of the craft and, sadly, the bodies of the deceased astronauts. As can be expected, great efforts went into this devastating task — not only by officials but also by civilian volunteers in the search area. While the logistics are sad, the example of a community banding together is inspiring.
Oddly, this was a super quick read (listen) for me. The pace is slow and I struggled to keep attention consistently due to long-winded passages. Yet, before I knew it I'd reached the end. It's not the most exciting space-related book I've read, but it was quite interesting.
