General

Search Continues for Remnants of the Shuttle. Officials are investigating the possibility that damage to heat-resistant tiles might have caused the disaster. By James Barron. [New York Times: NYT HomePage]

Loss of Shuttle a Serious Blow to International Space Station. Experts said today that there was a real danger that the space station may have to be shut down at the end of the current mission. By Barry James, International Herald Tribune. [New York Times: NYT HomePage]

A simple statement of law regarding Shuttle debris –  Selling debris from the space shuttle constitutes a federal crime. See 18 U.S.C. sec. 641. [via How Appealing] [Ernie the Attorney]

Sunday: Space Flight Not Routine. The most sensible single article on the Columbia loss that I’ve read appeared in today’s New York Times. In this article, the risks of space flight are dissected. As my colleague Jeff Carlson noted , we have to hope the astronauts were given as much insight into the chance of failure and other risks as were realistic. Elsewhere on the Net, I’ve seen quotes from Richard Feynman appear from his conclusions after the Challenger disaster that have similar conclusions, but this heartfelt statement from a NASA official sums it up best: Capt. Bill Readdy, associate administrator for space flight and a former astronaut, said at a news conference yesterday afternoon: “Today was a very stark reminder that this is a very risky endeavor, pushing back the frontiers in outer space. And after 113 flights, unfortunately, people have a tendency to look at it as something that is more or less routine. Well I can assure you it is not … [GlennLog]

Inquiry Putting An Early Focus On Heat Tiles. It could be months before NASA has a clear idea of what went wrong, if ever, but there are six possible causes of the disaster. By William J. Broad and James Glanz. [New York Times: NYT HomePage]

Shuttle Astronauts, RIP; Space Program, Too?. I feel nothing but sadness for the men and women who apparently perished this morning as their space shuttle… [Dan Gillmor’s eJournal]

The email I sent to Dave referencing my blog got published on scripting news!

Ronald Reagan, 1/28/86: “We’ve grown used to wonders in this century. It’s hard to dazzle us. But for 25 years the United States space program has been doing just that. We’ve grown used to the idea of space, and perhaps we forget that we’ve only just begun. We’re still pioneers.” [Scripting News]