Space
Shuttle Columbia Debris
Nacogdoches,
Texas
Feb 1-2, 2003
(Last
update Sunday 3/1, 9:30 AM)
By noon on Saturday, National media outlets were still not reporting very much, and radio reporters were all asking what type of debris had been found. I could only imagine how badly the World would want to see something, anything. I felt I had information to share, which is why I posted this page. The first images were posted about 1:00 PM February 1st, a few hours after the tragedy. Newer images appear at the top of the page.
New Photos - Debris found Friday 2/28/03
These 6 images are of this piece. The first photo is a good example of how dense some of the woods are. Many areas are much thicker than this, almost impossible to walk through. NASA recently stated only 10% of Columbia has been recovered. This 290 acre tract 7 miles East of Nacogdoches yielded 4 items. Click images to enlarge...
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New Photos - Tuesday 2/11/03
The three pictures above are of what appears to be a red scarf in a tree found by my Father. He said it was a sheer, see-through material.
Tuesday 2/11/03 - The 15 images below are of 11 fragments all in the yard of one house.
The neighborhood
The house
Debris on the roof
The
backyard
(arrows indicate debris)
Computer
chip
SPERRY
Back of SPERRY chip
Small electrical diode of some type, the size of my thumbnail.
Tile chips and fragments
This piece is curved, like part of a ring of some type.
Close-up of curved piece
Strap of some type
Pictures from here down were added between 2/1/03 and 2/7/03
Here
are some fragments I turned in Friday 2/7.
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image to enlarge...
This
is a photo of the Official GPS Debris Map on the wall
at one
of the main collection centers. It is dated February 2, 2003
This
was identified as a fuel pod, possibly for oxygen or hydrogen used
to make water. The impact craters were amazing. Click
images to enlarge...
Video
1 - 1st Impact crater
Video
2 - 2nd crater after 300 ft "bounce"
The image below is also this piece. Click image to enlarge...
This is the piece at the right, showing how very large areas may have only a small fragment. Click image to enlarge...
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This is the piece at the right, again showing how widespread the debris is. Click image to enlarge...
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This was a large piece, approx 3 ft x 5 ft found inside the loop, not far from the Sheriff's office. Click image to enlarge...
This piece landed near this truck 15 minutes after the truck parked. Click image to enlarge...
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The
following two pics are this piece. Click
image to enlarge...
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This is some sort of control box approx. 8"x12"x2" with severed & melted wires on the left end.
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This
piece was in a cemetery next to the airport. It is about 3
ft in length. The next 5 images are close ups of it.
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The
images below are close-ups of this piece
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Large chunk of heat tile. It is amazing how light this stuff is. Click image to enlarge...
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Video
Clip
Melted fiberglass. Extreme heat is needed to melt fibreglass. Click image to enlarge...
This fragment was stuck in the ground.
This is the only complete heat tile that I've seen.
This fragment was in the parking lot of the Sheriff's Department, going un-noticed and being stepped on by the media.
"TOP,
INBOARD, FACE"
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image to enlarge...
This is the only piece I've seen in a tree, but I'm sure there are more. Click image to enlarge...
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image to enlarge...
Video
Clip
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Horse
& Rider searching for debris
(Click
here for video ...)
Media around a GPS man from Stephen F. Austin State University. These GPS backpacks are being used to map the debris field. Even one inch fragments were being mapped. Video Clip...
Media
at Douglass Elementary
Video
of debris on the roof...
This
piece had melted rivets.
Video Clip
Scorched
fabric of some kind.
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image to enlarge...
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This is a piece of one of the heat tiles.
Fragments are widespread. See more below.
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This is an aluminum piece that was at Hwy 59 and the South Loop.
Here is another aluminum piece found on a cattle ranch West of town.
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This piece was approx 2'x3' and landed in downtown Nac. This site became the media center.
Debris
field of images above -
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to enlarge...
(I
personally have not been on the East side of town yet)
My
Account: 8:04 AM - I was awakened by a large BOOM followed
by a second smaller BOOM that was followed by an extended rumble
& roar that shook our house for at least 20-30 seconds,
but it felt like a minute or more. The sonic boom and the
rumble that followed were amazing. We've
heard sonic booms before, but this one was MUCH louder , and the rumble that
followed was like a major thunder rumble x 50. Loud, but very low pitched,
guttural, if that makes any sense. Tremendously forceful. Some
people I've talked to thought a gas well
near their home may have blown up. Others thought a train may have jumped the
track. It was like a freight train was running through the front
yard.
I joined my wife &
kids in the living room while the house was still shaking.
One of my frightened girls asked me "What was that? Is
it an earthquake?". Even the dogs were scared & whining.
I told my wife it sounded like a sonic boom. I thought
an Air force jet must have been in a hurry to get somewhere. We
went outside and saw a smoke trail over our house, extending East
to West. It looked a little odd, unlike a regular vapor trail.
I thought it might have been a meteor, but was fairly certain
it was an Air force jet. I had forgotten the shuttle was landing
and I didn't know of anything else that could have created a sonic
boom.
My Mom called about 10 minutes later
and
told us what had happened. We turned on CNN, but they were
not reporting anything
in our area yet, but we knew they would be. We got in the car and drove East, trying to
follow the smoke trail that had dissipated. The smoke had
seemed to be relatively low, and I thought the main crash site might
be within a few miles of our home. We drove about 20 miles
before stopping at
a convenience store. We met a couple that had been in Mansfield
Louisiana and had seen it in the sky, describing what they saw as sparklers
like kids play with. With this information, we returned to Nacogdoches and began
finding the debris you see above. Most all the pieces were being
watched or guarded by private citizens and National Guardsmen.
I
joined in the search Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Friday. There
is just so much land to cover and such small pieces to find. I
personally have helped cover several hundred acres of private land.
It's strange. A very large area of 100 plus acres may contain
nothing, yet a small area of 5 acres or so may have 3 dozen pieces.
I believe we will be finding fragments for years to come.
I'll
continue to post new images. Check back soon.
John
Frederick
Nacogdoches resident
Comments? Information to add? Click here to E-mail me.