Rohrabacher calls shuttle explosion ‘horrific loss’

Paul Clinton

As the chairman of the congressional subcommittee that oversees

NASA, Rep. Dana Rohrabacher said he was especially troubled by the

loss of the Columbia crew in Saturday’s tragic shuttle explosion.

Rohrabacher, a Republican, represents Costa Mesa in the 46th

District of the House.

“This is a horrific loss for the nation as well as the world,”

Rohrabacher said, “but we should not forget the ultimate sacrifice

sometimes space exploration requires of men and women who are

dedicated to pushing the boundaries.”

On Saturday morning, shortly after 6 a.m., the space shuttle

Columbia broke apart over Texas as it headed toward a scheduled

landing in Florida. The tragic crash came almost 17 years to the day

of the Challenger accident on Jan. 28, 1986.

Rohrabacher, who is the chairman of the Space & Aeronautics

Subcommittee, was in the district and hurriedly called a press

conference to respond to the tragic events that unfolded on Saturday

morning.

Rohrabacher spoke at the Newcomb Elementary School auditorium, in

Long Beach, at 11 a.m. Saturday. Rohrabacher announced that the

families of the shuttle’s crew had “a simple request” of the National

Aeronautics and Space Administration: “find out what happened, fix it

and move on.”

NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe said the loss of the Columbia’s

crew is “something we will never be able to get over.”

With shuttle missions becoming an essentially routine event for

many Americans, Rohrabacher said the Columbia disaster should serve

as a reminder about the difficulties and hazards involved in space

exploration.

“We must not lose sight of the fact that our continued drive to

the stars serves as a tribute to those who make that sacrifice in the

name of humanity.”