US officials yesterday vowed to ”leave absolutely no stone unturned” as they launched a massive hunt for evidence of the causes behind the fiery break-up of the space shuttle Columbia.
Nasa, the space agency, grounded its remaining shuttles until the reason for the disaster that claimed the lives of all seven astronauts on board can be determined.
Sean O’Keefe, the head of the space agency, described the break-up of Columbia as ”an accident of epic proportion”.
He said: ”We’re leaving nothing to chance.
”We’re looking at every piece of evidence, we’re securing all the debris and assuring we look at every possible angle of what could have caused this horrible accident.”
The televised tragedy that Americans woke up to on Saturday morning has delivered a bitter blow to the national psyche at a time when the US is battered by fears of further terrorism, the threat of war with Iraq, a faltering economy and tensions with North Korea.
Two American astronauts and one Russian cosmonaut are still on board the international space station.
Russia yesterday went ahead with the launch of a cargo rocket carrying food and fuel but Nasa plans to expand the station have been put on hold.
The last shuttle tragedy, 17 years ago, kept the fleet from flying for almost three years until its cause was discovered — faulty welds in rocket boosters.
Nasa and other federal authorities mobilised a massive hunt for debris from the Columbia, which had rained down across a vast area of Texas and Louisiana in the search for clues.
Hundreds of police and national guard troops placed traffic cones next to pieces of wreckage awaiting Nasa officials who aim to rebuild the craft. Several body parts were recovered after being found by residents.
In Nacogdoches, Texas, more than 1 200 pieces of debris had been reported by early yesterday afternoon, swamping local officials. Help was being drafted from other federal departments and volunteer organisations.
Nasa cautioned that it is still too early to determine what caused the disaster but investigations are focusing on a piece of insulating foam that peeled away during take-off and struck the shuttle’s left wing.
There is speculation that it could have damaged heat-shielding tiles, causing the structure to buckle in the intense heat of re-entry.
Nasa was yesterday accused of ignoring several warnings over the past few years of risks to the ageing shuttle fleet. There were reports that an inflight repair training programme had been closed because of budget cuts that have become the subject of bitter recriminations.
The Columbia broke apart with little warning as it re-entered the earth’s atmosphere on the approach to Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the end of a 16-day scientific mission.
Family members of the seven astronauts were yesterday comforting each other in Houston.
They spoke of the dreams that compelled their lost loved ones to take the risks of going into space.
Audrey McCool, the mother of William McCool said: ”Don’t give up the dream. Nothing is perfect and unfortunately it was his flight that wasn’t perfect. But don’t give up the dream.”
Two of those on board had already attained fame in the countries they hailed from. Ilan Ramon, Israel’s first astronaut, was a national figure at home, while Kalpana Chawla, was the first Indian-born woman in space.
President Bush, who ordered flags to fly at half-mast on all federal buildings, yesterday said the US would not abandon the space programme. ”The cause in which they died will continue,” he said. ”Our journey into space will go on.” – Guardian Unlimited Â