SB SPACE @ ARL $ARLS006
ARLS006 ISS crew grieves Columbia loss, moves forward

ZCZC AS06  
QST de W1AW  
Space Bulletin 006  ARLS006
From ARRL Headquarters  
Newington, CT  February 12, 2003
To all radio amateurs

SB SPACE ARL ARLS006
ARLS006 ISS crew grieves Columbia loss, moves forward

The all-ham crew members of the International Space Station said
February 11 that while they grieve the loss of the shuttle Columbia
crew, human space exploration must continue and they're ready to
spend up to a year in space if necessary. The ISS crew made its
first public comments since the February 1 shuttle disaster in two
news conferences this week.
 
The crew has not used the NA1SS onboard ham stations since the last
Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) school
contact in January. The next scheduled ARISS contact is set for
Friday, February 21, with students at Oregon State University.

Commander Ken Bowersox, KD5JBP, said that once it became unlikely
that there were any survivors from the Columbia catastrophe, ''we
discussed all of the different options for how it would affect us.
... We've got a Soyuz vehicle parked right outside.''
 
He said the crew did not feel isolated and had plenty of contact
with family and friends and that, while not operating at peak
efficiency, the ISS crew members would continue to move forward with
the ''serious tasks'' ahead of them.
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