To the Space Crew of the Shuttle Challenger, to 9-11, the Shuttle Columbia and all

the Men and Woman of the armed forces who are losing their lives to a battle against the enemies of the free world.

To the Firemen and Women who risked their lives

The Crew from the Shuttle Challenger

Jan 28th, 1986, the worst accident in spaceflight-history happened, when Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after liftoff into mission STS-51L, affecting the loss of all 7 crew members & the vehicule.. I included a radio communication transcript (official script by NASA) which begins at T-2:05 & ends at T+1:13, the moment of the Shuttle breakup.
Shuttle Challenger

"I know it's hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery. It's all a part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons. The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted. It belongs to the brave. We'll continue our conquest of space. Nothing ends here. Our hopes and our journeys continue.
-President Reagan in a speech to the nation after the Challenger Disaster.

The Crew of the Shuttle Columbia

On Jan. 16, 2003, 10:39 a.m. ET, space shuttle Columbia rocketed into orbit from Kennedy Space Center. On Feb. 1, all seven crew members were lost when Columbia disintegrated 39 miles over Texas.

President Addresses Nation on Space Shuttle Columbia Tragedy
Remarks by the President on the Loss of Space Shuttle Columbia
The Cabinet Room

2:04 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:

My fellow Americans, this day has brought terrible news and great sadness to our country. At 9:00 a.m. this morning, Mission Control in Houston lost contact with our Space Shuttle Columbia. A short time later, debris was seen falling from the skies above Texas. The Columbia is lost; there are no survivors.

On board was a crew of seven: Colonel Rick Husband; Lt. Colonel Michael Anderson; Commander Laurel Clark; Captain David Brown; Commander William McCool; Dr. Kalpana Chawla; and Ilan Ramon, a Colonel in the Israeli Air Force. These men and women assumed great risk in the service to all humanity.

In an age when space flight has come to seem almost routine, it is easy to overlook the dangers of travel by rocket, and the difficulties of navigating the fierce outer atmosphere of the Earth. These astronauts knew the dangers, and they faced them willingly, knowing they had a high and noble purpose in life. Because of their courage and daring and idealism, we will miss them all the more.

All Americans today are thinking, as well, of the families of these men and women who have been given this sudden shock and grief. You're not alone. Our entire nation grieves with you. And those you loved will always have the respect and gratitude of this country.

The cause in which they died will continue. Mankind is led into the darkness beyond our world by the inspiration of discovery and the longing to understand. Our journey into space will go on.

In the skies today we saw destruction and tragedy. Yet farther than we can see there is comfort and hope. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Lift your eyes and look to the heavens. Who created all these? He who brings out the starry hosts one by one and calls them each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing."

The same Creator who names the stars also knows the names of the seven souls we mourn today. The crew of the shuttle Columbia did not return safely to Earth; yet we can pray that all are safely home.

May God bless the grieving families, and may God continue to bless America.

END 2:08 P.M. EST

Columbia Shuttle Funds

Some Images I've collected in Memorial of 9-11-2001