| Article 1280
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Memorial honors fallen astronauts
Date: 9 May 91 04:52:39 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- Rotating to track the sun, a
giant black-granite ``space mirror'' honoring America's 15 fallen
astronauts was fine-tuned for dedication Thursday, five years after
the Challenger disaster inspired the $6.2 million monument.
Vice President Dan Quayle, chairman of the National Space
Council, planned to place a wreath near the shiny black monument
shortly before a fly over of four NASA T-38 jets in a ``missing man''
formation. To wrap up the ceremony, 15 doves were to be released into
the Florida sky.
An inscription on the monument reads: ``This Astronauts
Memorial ... is a tribute to American men and women who have made the
ultimate sacrifice believing the conquest of space is worth the risk
of life.''
The high-tech memorial, financed by Florida residents through
the sale of some 430,000 commemorative Challenger license plates, is
the first such monument dedicated to astronauts who lost their lives
in the line of duty.
Relatives of the honored astronauts planned to be on hand for
the dedication along with hundreds of government and industry
officials, including Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles and moonwalker Eugene
Cernan, scheduled to make opening remarks.
Called the ``Space Mirror'' by its designers, the Astronauts
Memorial is a 42.5-foot-high by 50-foot-wide slab made up of 93
2-inch-thick granite panels weighing 800 pounds each.
The names of 14 astronauts are cut through several of the
panels. Five gold stars were placed on the mirror to honor astronaut
Manley Lanier ``Sonny'' Carter, who died April 5 in a commuter plane
crash on the way to a NASA speaking engagement in Georgia. His name
will be carved in the monument later.
The 70,400-pound granite wall is mounted on a
computer-controlled turntable that rotates slowly through the day so
that sunlight constantly falls on mirrors hidden out of sight, behind
the black slabs. The sunlight then is reflected through the names of
the fallen astronauts.
The monument was designed so that a viewer standing in front
of the memorial would see the names of the astronauts shining,
seemingly suspended in the reflection of the Florida sky. Powerful
lights are mounted behind the memorial for use in cloudy weather and
at night.
Among those honored by the memorial are Challenger's seven
crew members, including New Hampshire school teacher Christa
McAuliffe, and three Apollo moon program astronauts who died in a 1967
launch pad fire.
The Astronauts Memorial was the brainchild of Orlando
architect Alan Helman, who founded the Astronauts Memorial Foundation
after the Jan. 28, 1986, Challenger disaster. The goal of the
organization was to build and maintain a monument to American
astronauts and to establish an education center near the spaceport.
The $6.2 million memorial project was financed by the sale of
Challenger license plates. Another $2 million was placed in a trust
fund for perpetual maintenance and NASA provided a 6-acre site for the
monument at the Kennedy Space Center visitors complex
The design was chosen from 756 entries in a national
competition won by San Francisco architects Paul Holt, Marc Hinshaw,
Peter Pfau and Wes Jones. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Oct.
11, 1989.
The memorial honors 15 astronauts who lost their lives in the
line of duty:
-Oct. 31, 1964: Astronaut Theodore Freeman was killed when his
T-38 jet trainer crashed at Ellington Air Force Base near the Johnson
Space Center in Houston.
-Feb. 28, 1966: Astronauts Charles Bassett and Elliott See
were killed when their T-38 jet crashed in heavy fog during approach
to St. Louis where they had planned to visit McDonnell Douglas
Astronautics Co.
-Jan. 27, 1967: Astronauts Virgil ``Gus'' Grissom, Edward
White and Roger Chaffee died during a routine launch pad test aboard
the first Apollo Moon program capsule when a fire broke out in the
cockpit. The accident delayed the Moon program significantly and
prompted a thorough redesign to improve safety.
-Oct. 15, 1967: Astronaut Clifton ``C.C.'' Williams died in an
airplane crash near Tallahassee, Fla.
-Jan. 28, 1986: Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after
blastoff, killing commander Francis ``Dick'' Scobee, co-pilot Michael
Smith and astronauts Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Judith Resnik,
satellite engineer Gregory Jarvis and New Hampshire school teacher
Christa McAuliffe. The disaster was blamed on a rupture in
Challenger's right-side solid-fuel booster rocket.
-April 5, 1991: Astronaut Manley Lanier ``Sonny'' Carter Jr.
died in a commuter plane crash in Georgia.
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| Article 1586
From: [email protected] (WILLIAM HARWOOD, UPI Science Writer)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.space,clari.news.aviation,clari.news.military
Subject: Astronauts memorial shut down
Date: 6 Aug 91 18:41:42 GMT
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (UPI) -- A $6.2 million memorial to
American astronauts killed in the line of duty was closed Monday
because of mechanical problems, but officials said Tuesday the massive
monument was expected to be reopened by Thursday.
The 37-ton, 50-by-42-foot Astronauts Memorial, financed by
sales of Florida license plates commemorating the 1986 Challenger
shuttle disaster, is made up of black granite slabs mounted in a giant
rectangular framework that sits on a massive turntable at the Kennedy
Space Center's visitors complex.
The names of 14 fallen space fliers were cut through the
granite and filled in with clear plastic, allowing sunlight to shine
through. As the Sun moves from east to west, the monument rotates
slowly on its turntable to keep the names illuminated from behind.
The Astronauts Memorial Foundation in Orlando shut the
attraction down Monday after reports of popping noises coming from the
monument's structure. The memorial, also called the ``space mirror,''
was then closed to the public.
Engineers quickly determined the problem involved the
structural system that allows the monument to pitch forward and back
slightly as it tracks the Sun.
While engineers are confident the memorial is structurally
sound, foundation spokesman Randy Berridge said, ``We want to make
sure...that it is indeed totally safe.''
``We're bringing in some outside consultants (Wednesday) to
review what we have observed and if they concur with that, we expect
the memorial, the space mirror, to be back in operation Thursday,'' he
said. ``As we anticipate now, the repairs will be minimal and will not
be expensive.''
He said the problem involved a misalignment of just 1 1/2
inches in a structure designed to have up to 3 inches of ``play'' to
allow for high winds.
``We have cordoned it off as a precaution,'' Berridge said.
``We expect to be in full operation Thursday.''
The memorial was dedicated by Vice President Dan Quayle,
chairman of the National Space Council, on May 9. Before it was opened
to the public, officials discovered cracks in the granite panels
featuring the names of fallen astronauts.
While tests are not yet complete, engineers believe the cracks
were caused by the expansion and contraction of the plastic used to
fill in the names of the honored astronauts.
A $2-million maintenance trust -- also funded by Challenger
license plate receipts -- will cover the costs of replacing the
cracked panels and any mechanical repairs to the memorial's framework.
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