Posts: 195
Threads: 25
Joined: Jul 2005
A terrible tragedy,indeed. Columbia and HP-41s were entwined for quite a while, ans as a user I really feel sad.
On the other hand is remarkable that a shuttle with an envisioned life span of fifteen or so years kept soldierong on long after its supposed retirement from active duty. A tribute to American and NASA technology, I think.
My deepest and more sincere condolences for the lives that were lost and their families.
While we all feel sad for such a tragic loss, retirement is not an option. After finding out what really happened, we must keep going with space exploration. After all, our little machines are a spin-off of the technology developed to teke us to the space. And there is so much that still has to be done regarding a better understanding of what lies above our heads...
May the lives that were unfortunately lost yesterday keep us going forward. It's the best we can do to honor their memory.