Photographs from the event chronicle look back on coverage of the Columbia shuttle disaster

by

Longtime Houston Chronicle photojournalists Karen Warren and Brett Comer have covered just about everything in their careers, from several World Championship for several Tornadoes And everything in between, but this week they are Looking back on the fateful day 20 years ago When they receive word that the Columbia space shuttle has crashed over Texas.

Warren was sent to Nacogdoches as soon as the news broke on February 1, 2003, where she remained for the rest of the week covering what became the epicenter of the search for the wreck as authorities sought answers for what happened to cause such a catastrophic failure. Warren watched as the Earthlings found potentially radioactive debris in their fields and NASA astronomers like Mark Kelly arrived to search for pieces of the shuttle themselves.

Tamara Bowden is seen kissing her son, Beau, 4, in the shade in downtown Nacogdoches where she left seven roses in memory of the Columbia astronauts in February 2003. A hunk of the shuttle came to rest in Nacogdoches after it exploded on February 1, 2003 (Karen Warren/Houston chronicle)
Tamara Bowden is seen kissing her son, Beau, 4, in the shade in downtown Nacogdoches where she left seven roses in memory of the Columbia astronauts in February 2003. A hunk of the shuttle came to rest in Nacogdoches after it exploded on February 1, 2003 (Karen Warren/Houston chronicle)

(2/1/03) Astronauts Mark Kelly, left, holding a piece of the Columbia shuttle, and Greg Johnson, walk down a country road near the airport in Nacogdoches, Saturday afternoon after the space shuttle exploded and debris sprayed across eastern Texas. .
(2/1/03) Astronauts Mark Kelly, left, holding a piece of the Columbia shuttle, and Greg Johnson, walk down a country road near the airport in Nacogdoches, Saturday afternoon after the space shuttle exploded and debris sprayed across eastern Texas. .
Karen Warren/Houston Chronicle

STS-107 (2/2/03) McPowell stands next to what is believed to be the suspected damaged left wing of the downed space shuttle Columbia, on his property in Nacogdoches County, Sunday night. He found the wreck Sunday morning complete with several damaged refractory tiles (NO ONE WANTS TO KNOW THE EXACT LOCATION!!!!) (Karen Warren/Houston Chronicle) HOOKRON COMMENT (02/03/2003): McPowell looks at it for what he thinks is a fragment From the wing of a shuttle he found on his property in Nacogdoches County. Houston Chronicle Special Report: Columbia's Last Mission.

STS-107 (2/2/03) McPowell stands next to what is believed to be the suspected damaged left wing of the downed space shuttle Columbia, on his property in Nacogdoches County, Sunday night. He found the wreck Sunday morning complete with several damaged refractory tiles (NO ONE WANTS TO KNOW THE EXACT LOCATION!!!!) (Karen Warren/Houston Chronicle) HOOKRON COMMENT (02/03/2003): McPowell looks at it for what he thinks is a fragment From the wing of a shuttle he found on his property in Nacogdoches County. Houston Chronicle Special Report: Columbia’s Last Mission.


Karen Warren/Houston Chronicle


LEFT: Astronauts Mark Kelly, left, holding a piece of the shuttle Columbia, and Greg Johnson, walk down a country road near the airport in Nacogdoches in search of debris. Right: McPowell stands next to what is believed to be the suspected damaged left wing of the space shuttle Columbia, on his property in Nacogdoches County, Sunday evening. He found the wreck on Sunday morning, complete with several damaged refractory tiles.

The town also became a growing memorial to the seven victims who went missing in the disaster as people gathered to pay their respects to the crew members. Watch the video below to hear Warren recount a handful of memories from those early days.

Houston Chronicle photographer Karen Warren recalls covering the Columbia shuttle disaster Video: Karen Warren, staff photographer

For Comer, who now works as a staff photographer for the Houston Chronicle but at the time was a freelancer in Houston often working for the Houston Chronicle but also for Getty wire services and the Associated Press, he got the news by pager and headed straight to Johnson Space Center. The NASA home in Houston was a familiar location for Comer who had been covering space shuttle missions for years by that point and had a badge allowing him to enter the property.

HOUSTON, TX - FEBRUARY 1: Katherine O'Neill and her son, Zachary, of Laguna Hills, Calif., kneel at the entrance sign for NASA's Johnson Space Center where a temporary memorial is being erected for the crew of the space shuttle Columbia, Feb. 1, 2003 in Houston, Texas. Columbia has collapsed on re-entry over Texas after a 16-day science mission and the seven astronauts on board are feared dead.

HOUSTON, TX – FEBRUARY 1: Katherine O’Neill and her son, Zachary, of Laguna Hills, Calif., kneel at the entrance sign for NASA’s Johnson Space Center where a temporary memorial is being erected for the crew of the space shuttle Columbia, Feb. 1, 2003 in Houston, Texas. Columbia has collapsed on re-entry over Texas after a 16-day science mission and the seven astronauts on board are feared dead.

Brett Comer/Getty Images

Comer found a growing memorial for the lives lost as members of the public and people with close ties to the space program flocked to Mission Control headquarters just south of Houston to pay tribute. Kummer photographed Columbia crew member Ilan Ramon a few years earlier training with another Israeli astronaut at Johnson Space Center in a model of the space shuttle. Below, hear Comer recount his recollections of the days after the shuttle broke up over Texas.

Houston Chronicle photographer Brett Comer recalls covering the Columbia shuttle disaster Video: Brett Comer, staff photographer

For more information on the 20th anniversary of the Columbia shuttle disaster, read Chronicle reporter Andrea Linfelder’s look at Legacy of the Columbia Disaster at NASA.

This is my carousel. Use the next and previous buttons to navigate

Leave a Comment