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CNN Live At Daybreak
Shuttle Columbia Debris Recovery
Aired February 04, 2003 - 06:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Analyzing debris from the shuttle is key to finding out what went wrong and making sure it never happens again.
Our Mike Brooks is live from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana.
And, Mike, I want to talk first about the nose cone. A large section of the nose cone was found in a patch of Texas woods. Why is that so important?
MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it looks like this is the largest piece so far, Carol, that was found in Sabine County, Texas. So, hopefully that can also reveal exactly what happened to Space Shuttle Columbia.
Also yesterday, there was some other debris that they're looking for, and as the sun comes up today over Texas and Louisiana, divers and searchers will be in boats at the Toledo Bend Reservoir, which is right on the border of East Texas and Louisiana. They will be looking for what witnesses said was a piece the size of a small car. They're going to bring in sophisticated sonar equipment to search for this in the bottom of this reservoir. The reservoir apparently is fairly deep, and that's why they need to bring this sonar equipment in.
Now, I want to stress, we're talking about debris spread over a 28,000 square mile area, Carol, so we're talking a very, very large area. And law enforcement and emergency response folks that are going out to the calls that they're getting about debris located in the two states, they've got their hands full.
But NASA wants to find every little piece. As we just heard, there could be some information on one of these pieces of tile that could tell us something. And we go back -- you know, they're looking for that "oh, wow" piece, if you will, that could make this investigation.
If we go back to Pan Am 103, for instance, that blew up over Lockerbie, Scotland, that crime scene was only 75 square miles, and what made that case was a small, little piece, and that made the case.
Now, if we do find debris, don't touch it, and there's a number that we can call to Johnson Space Center. That is 281-483-3388. Citizens can help. Don't touch it. Call the number. People will respond and where they will pick it up -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand. Mike, thanks very much. That number again, 281-483-3388.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired February 4, 2003 - 06:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Analyzing debris from the shuttle is key to finding out what went wrong and making sure it never happens again.
Our Mike Brooks is live from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana.
And, Mike, I want to talk first about the nose cone. A large section of the nose cone was found in a patch of Texas woods. Why is that so important?
MIKE BROOKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it looks like this is the largest piece so far, Carol, that was found in Sabine County, Texas. So, hopefully that can also reveal exactly what happened to Space Shuttle Columbia.
Also yesterday, there was some other debris that they're looking for, and as the sun comes up today over Texas and Louisiana, divers and searchers will be in boats at the Toledo Bend Reservoir, which is right on the border of East Texas and Louisiana. They will be looking for what witnesses said was a piece the size of a small car. They're going to bring in sophisticated sonar equipment to search for this in the bottom of this reservoir. The reservoir apparently is fairly deep, and that's why they need to bring this sonar equipment in.
Now, I want to stress, we're talking about debris spread over a 28,000 square mile area, Carol, so we're talking a very, very large area. And law enforcement and emergency response folks that are going out to the calls that they're getting about debris located in the two states, they've got their hands full.
But NASA wants to find every little piece. As we just heard, there could be some information on one of these pieces of tile that could tell us something. And we go back -- you know, they're looking for that "oh, wow" piece, if you will, that could make this investigation.
If we go back to Pan Am 103, for instance, that blew up over Lockerbie, Scotland, that crime scene was only 75 square miles, and what made that case was a small, little piece, and that made the case.
Now, if we do find debris, don't touch it, and there's a number that we can call to Johnson Space Center. That is 281-483-3388. Citizens can help. Don't touch it. Call the number. People will respond and where they will pick it up -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand. Mike, thanks very much. That number again, 281-483-3388.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
