In Photos: Remembering the Columbia Space Shuttle Disaster 20 Years Later | Page 24 of 24

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NASA’s Day of Remembrance

Photo: Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle — Photo: Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle (AP)

This photo shows people attending a NASA Day of Remembrance ceremony on Thursday, January 26, 2023, in the Astronaut Tree Grove at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Evelyn Husband Thompson was speaking about her late husband, Rick Husband, at the time. Fallen astronauts from Apollo 1 and the Space Shuttle Challenger were also honored at the ceremony.

In total, 14 astronauts died during the 135 Space Transportation System missions from 1981 to 2011—a failure rate that left a mixed legacy for the now-retired Shuttle program.

More: The Space Shuttle Was a Beautiful—but Terrible—Idea

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