It's difficult to know how to properly mourn NASA's Columbia crew - the world's lost heroes. That is not to say the loss of seven astronauts isn't tragic - it is. It's just we seem to have grown somewhat numb when it comes to taking in events such as Saturday's.
We've taken space travel for granted for so many years. To the bulk of the nation, NASA shuttle missions have become as commonplace as a trip to the gas station. Many people were unaware until Saturday morning's tragic reports that Columbia had been in Earth's orbit.
Many people were unaware Columbia's January launch was to be the commencement of its third decade of flight. NASA's oldest shuttle first flew in April 1981. Columbia's maiden voyage ushered in a new era of human space exploration.
But what many might have conceived as a routine, Columbia was anything but. Even though humans first stepped foot on the moon nearly 34 years ago, space travel hasn't become routine. Space travel is dangerous.
Like soldiers who march into battle, NASA astronauts put their lives on the line each time they suit up. Astronauts are people who risk their lives for the betterment of human science and society. Those seven men and women who died on Columbia gave their lives knowing their efforts were meant to improve our future.
Like the smoldering images of the World Trade Center that seemed to be permanently etched in every American's mind since Sept. 11, 2001, many members of our generation can still picture the towers of spiraling smoke that were left over the Florida sky when the space shuttle Challenger exploded Jan. 28, 1986.
These are painful memories. We are moved with pity for those who have died and those who they left behind. But we also stand in awe of our own humanity.
As Columbia's debris rained down from nearly 40 miles above the Earth and across a 200-mile path from eastern Texas and western Louisiana, we were reminded that despite our technological triumphs, we are not the masters of them. We put our lives in the hands of the machines we build. And we often do so with the knowledge and hope the danger we face will be outweighed by the fruits of our endeavor.
NASA officials have vowed to find the cause of Columbia's tragic fate. And we have faith they will.
Our human drive to explore and improve our way of life will not let the possibilities for our future to be grounded forever. We will learn from this tragedy like we did from the Challenger and allow our dreams to blast off again.
And regardless of any post-Sept. 11 or post-Challenger numbness we may have, one thing is certain - seven astronauts lost their lives on Saturday. That was a tragedy. And it wasn't just a national tragedy, it was a world tragedy.
Six Americans and one Israeli risked their lives for humanity. They, and all others like them who knowingly face mortal danger in their work, are heroes. We should honor their memory and respectively mourn for the world's great loss.
