Crew to honor Columbia astronauts

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Discovery Commander Eileen Collins has something special planned to honor the seven astronauts who died when the shuttle Columbia broke apart attempting to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere in February 2003.

“We will remember the (Columbia) crew on this mission, but I don’t want to share anything now,” said Collins.

“We have been thinking about things we can do on this mission to remember them, not only in our hearts but in a visual way, things that we can share with the rest of the world,” Collins said during an April news conference. “We are carrying on the mission of the Columbia crew. We miss our fellow astronauts. We want to share their hopes and their dreams with the rest of you.”

Then, with a smile, she stopped herself. “I’m not going to let any more out of the bag,” she said.

Among those killed was astronaut Michael Anderson, a Spokane native and 1977 Cheney High School graduate.

Seventeen years ago, another crew aboard Discovery paid tribute to fallen colleagues. Commander Rick Hauck and his crew offered a tear-producing memorial to the seven astronauts – Dick Scobee, Michael Smith, Judith Resnick, Ron McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe and Greg Jarvis – who died two years earlier when Challenger exploded over the Atlantic Ocean shortly after liftoff.

“Today,” Hauck said the day before Discovery’s landing, “up here where the blue sky turns to black, we can say at long last, to Dick, Mike, Judy, to Ron and El, and to Christa and to Greg: Dear friends, we have resumed the journey that we promised to continue for you; dear friends, your loss has meant that we could confidently begin anew; dear friends, your spirit and your dream are still alive in our hearts.”