The Columbia Orbiter Memorial Act, born in the
legislation introduced in March in the Senate by Ted Stevens
(R-Alaska), and in the House of Representatives by C.W. Bill
Young (R-Fla.), was signed into law by the President last
Wednesday.
NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe said, “The actions by the
Congress and the President to honor the crew of the Space
Shuttle Columbia is heartfelt by the entire NASA family and
by the entire country. A national memorial in the Nation’s
capital will serve as a reminder about what the crew of
Columbia stood for, bravery, honor, and the quest for
knowledge. I feel it will help inspire future explorers and
help keep the spirit of exploration alive in America. We at
NASA are grateful for the support from Senator Stevens and
Congressman Young for the timely and thoughtful legislation
and their caring approach to commemorate the Columbia crew.”
President George W. Bush signed the “Emergency Wartime
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2003” into law on April 16,
2003. The “Columbia Orbiter Memorial Act” is contained in
what is now Public Law Number 108-11.
The memorial will be placed in the Arlington National
Cemetery near the memorial to the crew of the Space Shuttle
Challenger. The law authorizes the Secretary of the Army, in
consultation the NASA, to place the Columbia marker in
Arlington National Cemetery, and authorizes up to $500,000
of previously appropriated funds for the memorial. The
legislation also authorizes NASA to collect gifts and
donations, over the next five years, for the Columbia
Memorial. It also permits NASA to erect other appropriate
memorials or monuments with private donations. The law
allows NASA to transfer collected money or property for the
fund to the Secretary of the Army to defray expenses.
Memorial fund procedures will be established and announced
in the near future.
The Space Shuttle Columbia was lost on February 1, 2003 with
her seven crewmembers, astronauts Rick Husband, Willie
McCool, Mike Anderson, David Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel
Clark, and Ilan Ramon. The Columbia crew’s marker will join
the memorial to Challenger crew, Ronald McNair, Ellison
Onizuka, Judith Resnick, Dick Scobee, Michael Smith, Gregory
Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe, lost on January 28, 1986.
For more information about NASA, the Columbia Accident
Investigation, and human space flight on the Internet,
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