It has been several weeks now since the loss of the space shuttle Columbia. Time for a shocked nation to once again mourn the loss of a brave and talented crew. Time to wonder what went wrong. Time to again ponder the future of man in space.
With the war on terrorism, the looming showdown with Saddam Hussein, and mounting economic difficulties at home, the space program had receded into the background of American consciousness. As news of Columbia’s tragic break-up in the skies over Texas cast a pall over a late-winter Saturday, it is safe to say that many – in fact most Americans didn’t even know a shuttle mission was underway. So routine had become the shuttle program’s missions they garnered little attention outside the ranks of avid space junkies.
And that is yet another tragedy. In the early 1960s the “space race” with the Soviet Union captured the imagination of the country. As the decade progressed, excitement grew as we neared President Kennedy’s goal of putting a man on the moon. Neil Armstrong’s “small step for a man” transfixed a nation and infused it with renewed pride. From the dramatic return of Apollo 13, to the dawn of the shuttle age, NASA and the space program were emblematic of the American spirit.
But somewhere in recent years the flame grew dim. Our fascination with space peaks periodically. Like it did when Challenger exploded that sun-drenched Florida morning. And there were notable achievements, such as the repair of the Hubble telescope, and the launching of the new space station. But lately, shuttle missions have become more mundane – limited largely to delivering materials to the space station, and the conduct of scientific experiments.
Make no mistake; the missions retained their importance. It is just that the American space program has lacked the big, bold challenges that were so characteristic of its early days.
It is almost impossible to exaggerate the importance of space-related research and development in our national life. I wrote this commentary on a computer, the technology for which sprang from the space program. It is broadcast in digital sound, again an advancement that was nurtured by NASA. And you’re listening to it on a radio, the components of which had their roots in space technology.
The great economic expansion of the American economy through the 1980s and 1990s came largely because of dramatically increased productivity. Again, the underlying technology that fueled our economic progress had its origins in space-related research. This in itself was actually another “giant leap for mankind” inasmuch as previous surges in human productivity came as a result of war-driven research and development, not from peaceful pursuits.
Now, we stand at a crossroads. America, and the world, has seven new heroes as a result of the Columbia disaster. They were brave men and women; bright, talented, and infused with the same spirit of adventure that fueled the growth of 13 tiny colonies into the world’s lone superpower. As a result of their sacrifice, America has again been forced to confront its destiny.
Should we now turn back to the safe course of unmanned space exploration? Should we undertake just limited missions within our own orbit? Or, should we again venture into the outer regions of the “final frontier”?
President George W. Bush summed it up well during the memorial service for the Columbia astronauts when he said: “This cause of exploration and discovery is not an option we choose. It is a desire written in the human heart.”
It is also at the heart and soul of what it means to be an American. It is time for this nation to raise its sights above the dismal horizon of terrorism and economic stagnation. It is time for us to again ignite our imaginations and develop new goals and missions that will propel mankind to our next level of excellence.
Such a rebirth would be a lasting memorial to the brave men and women of Columbia – and a fitting next chapter in the history of a nation for whom dreaming, exploring, and achieving are the essence of life itself.