On Aug. 4, 2005, the STS-114 and Expedition 11 crews took time out of
their schedule to pay tribute to all of the astronauts and cosmonauts
who have given their lives for space exploration.
Wearing red shirts with the STS-107 patch, each crewmember provided
words of tribute and remembrance in their native language -- English,
Russian and Japanese.
STS-114 is the first Space Shuttle mission to fly since the
loss of Columbia and the STS-107 crew. The STS-107 crewmembers -- Rick
Husband, Willie McCool, Michael Anderson, Dave Brown, Kalpana Chawla,
Laurel Clark and Ilan Ramon -- were lost when Columbia broke up over
northern Texas during re-entry.
Transcript of the Tribute follows:
Exploration - The Fire of the Human Spirit, Exploration - The Fire of
the Human Spirit
A Tribute – To Fallen Astronauts and Cosmonauts
08.04.05
STS-114 Commander Eileen Collins:
Those who dare to venture into an unexplored land will have revealed to
them things which were never known.
Those who venture out upon the sea will have revealed to them things
never heard.
But those who venture into the sky upon wings of silence…….
Yes, the ethereal adventurers…..
Theirs is the revelation of things never dreamed!
Such are the ways of explorers
And the surpassing way of the sky.
STS-114 Pilot Jim Kelly:
As we orbit the Earth today, we are able to watch the beauty of the
Earth and heavens unfurl before us as we undertake this journey. And we
are reminded that it is upon the completion of the journey and the
arrival back at the place from whence we came that we can say we truly
know ourselves. Sadly, there are those who have been challenged by the
adventure of human space exploration but who have not been able to
experience that special feeling that comes with returning home. These
are the men and women who have come before us, in courage, but who did
not complete their journey of exploration. It is to these explorers
that we now take a moment to reflect upon, and to whom we now pay
tribute.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Steve Robinson:
The spirit of exploration is truly part of what it is to be human.
Human history has been a continual struggle from darkness toward light,
a search for knowledge and deeper understanding, a search for truth.
Ever since our distant ancestors ventured forth into the world, there
has been an insatiable curiosity to see what lies beyond the next hill,
what lies beyond the horizon. That is the fire of the human spirit that
we all carry.
Through that spirit and through realizing its ambitions, the human race
has come to find its present place in the world. Previous generations
went first on foot, then on horseback. Later came the wooden sailing
vessels that opened new continents and new lands. Today we have
aircraft and space craft. We have shrunk the world in a way that early
generations of explorers could never have imagined.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Wendy Lawrence:
Likewise, even if the future is equally unimaginable to us, we can be
sure that future generations will look upon our endeavors in space as
we look upon those early expeditions across the seas. To those
generations, the need to explore space will be as self evident as the
need previous generations felt to explore the Earth and the Seas.
As President Kennedy said of space exploration:
"Space is there and we’re going to climb it, and the moon and planets
are there and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And,
therefore, as we set sail we ask God’s blessing on the most hazardous
and dangerous and greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked."
"We choose to do these things ... not because they are easy, but
because they are hard."
And, certainly, space exploration is not easy, and there has been a
human price that has been paid. As we step out into this new frontier
we find that it is very unforgiving of our mistakes. The lives lost
over thirty years ago with the early steps taken by the crews of Apollo
1, Soyuz 1 and Soyuz 11 vehicles showed us that. The loss of the crew
of Challenger reaffirmed the need to be ever vigilant of the risks.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Charlie Camarda:
Tragically, two years ago, we came once more to realize that we had let
our guard down. We became lost in our own hubris and learned once more
the terrible price that must be paid for our failures. In that accident
we not only lost seven colleagues, we lost seven friends. Their
families never shared in their homecoming. Those seven were driven by
the fire of the human spirit within. They believed in space
exploration. They knew the risks, but they believed in what they were
doing. They showed us that the fire of the human spirit is insatiable.
They knew that in order for a great people to do great things, they
must not be bridled by timidity.
Expedition 11 Flight Engineer John Phillips:
To the crew of Columbia, as well as the crews of Challenger, Apollo 1
and Soyuz 1 and 11, and to those who have courageously given so much,
we now offer our enduring thanks. From you we will carry the human
spirit out into space, and we will continue the explorations you have
begun. We will find those new harbors that lie out in the stars and of
which you dreamed. We do this not just because we owe it to you, but we
do it because we also share your dream of a better world. We share your
dream of coming to understand ourselves and our place in this universe.
And as we journey into space you will be in our thoughts and will be
deeply missed.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi:
Previous paragraph repeated in Japanese.
Expedition 11 Commander Sergei Krikalev:
Previous paragraph repeated in Russian.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Andy Thomas:
Not twice may any stand by the same stream,
Not twice possess the years that hasten on;
Something there was we looked on, loved, ‘tis gone
Or stays but as the shadow of a dream.
Hands that we touched clasp ours no more, and eyes
That shone for us as stars withdrew their light;
Voices beloved pass out into the night;
The gift of yesterday, today denies.
Yet we must hold it for a deeper truth,
Nothing that is, but only that which seems
Shall find its dwelling in the place of dreams;
The soul’s possession is eternal youth.
Swift flows the stream, but in it as it flows
The same unchanging stars are mirrored bright.
Swift fly the years, but heedless of their flight
The touch of time, nor love nor friendship knows.
STS-114 Commander Eileen Collins:
And, in closing, for all our lost colleagues, we leave you with this
prayer, often spoken for those who have sacrificed themselves for all
of us:
They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
A Tribute – To Fallen Astronauts and Cosmonauts
08.04.05
STS-114 Commander Eileen Collins:
Those who dare to venture into an unexplored land will have revealed to
them things which were never known.
Those who venture out upon the sea will have revealed to them things
never heard.
But those who venture into the sky upon wings of silence…….
Yes, the ethereal adventurers…..
Theirs is the revelation of things never dreamed!
Such are the ways of explorers
And the surpassing way of the sky.
STS-114 Pilot Jim Kelly:
As we orbit the Earth today, we are able to watch the beauty of the
Earth and heavens unfurl before us as we undertake this journey. And we
are reminded that it is upon the completion of the journey and the
arrival back at the place from whence we came that we can say we truly
know ourselves. Sadly, there are those who have been challenged by the
adventure of human space exploration but who have not been able to
experience that special feeling that comes with returning home. These
are the men and women who have come before us, in courage, but who did
not complete their journey of exploration. It is to these explorers
that we now take a moment to reflect upon, and to whom we now pay
tribute.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Steve Robinson:
The spirit of exploration is truly part of what it is to be human.
Human history has been a continual struggle from darkness toward light,
a search for knowledge and deeper understanding, a search for truth.
Ever since our distant ancestors ventured forth into the world, there
has been an insatiable curiosity to see what lies beyond the next hill,
what lies beyond the horizon. That is the fire of the human spirit that
we all carry.
Through that spirit and through realizing its ambitions, the human race
has come to find its present place in the world. Previous generations
went first on foot, then on horseback. Later came the wooden sailing
vessels that opened new continents and new lands. Today we have
aircraft and space craft. We have shrunk the world in a way that early
generations of explorers could never have imagined.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Wendy Lawrence:
Likewise, even if the future is equally unimaginable to us, we can be
sure that future generations will look upon our endeavors in space as
we look upon those early expeditions across the seas. To those
generations, the need to explore space will be as self evident as the
need previous generations felt to explore the Earth and the Seas.
As President Kennedy said of space exploration:
"Space is there and we’re going to climb it, and the moon and planets
are there and new hopes for knowledge and peace are there. And,
therefore, as we set sail we ask God’s blessing on the most hazardous
and dangerous and greatest adventure on which man has ever embarked."
"We choose to do these things ... not because they are easy, but
because they are hard."
And, certainly, space exploration is not easy, and there has been a
human price that has been paid. As we step out into this new frontier
we find that it is very unforgiving of our mistakes. The lives lost
over thirty years ago with the early steps taken by the crews of Apollo
1, Soyuz 1 and Soyuz 11 vehicles showed us that. The loss of the crew
of Challenger reaffirmed the need to be ever vigilant of the risks.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Charlie Camarda:
Tragically, two years ago, we came once more to realize that we had let
our guard down. We became lost in our own hubris and learned once more
the terrible price that must be paid for our failures. In that accident
we not only lost seven colleagues, we lost seven friends. Their
families never shared in their homecoming. Those seven were driven by
the fire of the human spirit within. They believed in space
exploration. They knew the risks, but they believed in what they were
doing. They showed us that the fire of the human spirit is insatiable.
They knew that in order for a great people to do great things, they
must not be bridled by timidity.
Expedition 11 Flight Engineer John Phillips:
To the crew of Columbia, as well as the crews of Challenger, Apollo 1
and Soyuz 1 and 11, and to those who have courageously given so much,
we now offer our enduring thanks. From you we will carry the human
spirit out into space, and we will continue the explorations you have
begun. We will find those new harbors that lie out in the stars and of
which you dreamed. We do this not just because we owe it to you, but we
do it because we also share your dream of a better world. We share your
dream of coming to understand ourselves and our place in this universe.
And as we journey into space you will be in our thoughts and will be
deeply missed.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Soichi Noguchi:
Previous paragraph repeated in Japanese.
Expedition 11 Commander Sergei Krikalev:
Previous paragraph repeated in Russian.
STS-114 Mission Specialist Andy Thomas:
Not twice may any stand by the same stream, Not twice possess the years
that hasten on; Something there was we looked on, loved, ‘tis gone Or
stays but as the shadow of a dream.
Hands that we touched clasp ours no more, and eyes That shone for us as
stars withdrew their light; Voices beloved pass out into the night; The
gift of yesterday, today denies.
Yet we must hold it for a deeper truth, Nothing that is, but only that
which seems Shall find its dwelling in the place of dreams; The soul’s
possession is eternal youth.
Swift flows the stream, but in it as it flows The same unchanging stars
are mirrored bright. Swift fly the years, but heedless of their flight
The touch of time, nor love nor friendship knows.
STS-114 Commander Eileen Collins:
And, in closing, for all our lost colleagues, we leave you with this
prayer, often spoken for those who have sacrificed themselves for all
of us:
They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not
weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in
the morning We will remember them.
from http://www.nasa.gov
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