Columbia disaster, preparing for launch. Footage of members of the shuttle crew inside the shuttle being prepared by ground crew technicians for mission STS-107, flown by the Space Shuttle Columbia from 16 January to 1 February 2003. This mission launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, USA. The shuttle broke up on re-entry due to damage sustained during the launch, killing all seven on board. The members of the crew were US astronauts Rick Husband, William McCool, David M. Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Michael P. Anderson and Laurel Clark, and Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon. This footage shows the mid-deck area, with payload specialist Ilan Ramon being assisted into the S7 position prior to launch. On this flight, the mid-deck area had seats for three astronauts, with the other four on the flight deck. From 1994 to the end of the space shuttle programme, astronauts wore the Advanced Crew Escape Suit (ACES) during ascent and re-entry. |