Jan 16 2003
From The Space Library
Space Shuttle Columbia launched on STS-107 from NASA's KSC in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 10:39 a.m. (EST). NASA had postponed the launch, originally scheduled for July 2001, because of technical and scheduling problems. Flying an orbital mission, a rare event since the ISS partners had begun construction of the space station in 1998, STS-107 was a “pure research mission.” The crew would conduct scientific investigations in two 12-hour shifts each day in the laboratory module of the Shuttle's cargo bay. The crew included Shuttle Commander Rick D. Husband; Pilot William C. McCool; Payload Commander Michael P. Anderson; Payload Specialist Ilan Ramon, Israel's first astronaut and a fighter pilot with the rank of colonel in Israel's Air Force; Mission Specialist Kalpana Chawla, an aerospace engineer originally from India; and Mission Specialists David M. Brown and Laurel B. Clark, both physicians. The launch occurred under exceptionally tight security with more than 300 dignitaries and guests from Israel in attendance. (Broward Liston for Reuters, “Space Shuttle Launches with First Israeli Astronaut,” 16 January 2003; Warren E. Leary, “Columbia Takes Off Under Tight Security,” New York Times, 16 January 2003.
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