NASA will honor members of the NASA family, including the crews of Apollo 1 and space shuttles Challenger and Columbia, who lost their lives while furthering the cause of exploration and discovery during the agency’s annual Day of Remembrance on Tuesday, Jan. 31.
On the Day of Remembrance, NASA Acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot, and other agency senior officials, will hold an observance and wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia starting at 11 a.m. EST.
(On Jan. 26, a live tribute was held at the Kennedy Space Center visitor complex in honor of the crews of Apollo 1, and the space shuttles Challenger and Columbia, as well as other NASA colleagues who lost their lives for the cause of exploration. Courtesy of NASA and YouTube)
Various NASA centers will hold observances on and leading up to the Day of Remembrance for the public, employees and the families of those lost in service to America’s space program.
NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 1 tragedy yesterday, Jan. 26, at the Astronauts Memorial Foundation hall in the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.
(On Jan. 27, The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex marked the official opening of an Apollo 1 tribute at the Apollo/Saturn V Center located in the visitor complex – on the 50-year anniversary of the accidental fire that occurred inside the Apollo 1 spacecraft on the launch pad at Cape Kennedy. Courtesy of NASA and YouTube)
Also on Thursday, employees at the agency’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans unveiled a banner honoring Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia crews.
On Friday, Jan. 27, Kennedy will host a public ceremony at 11 a.m. for the official opening of an Apollo 1 tribute at the Apollo/Saturn V Center of the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. This event also will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website.
(Learn More. The Journeys of Apollo is a previously produced documentary narrated by Actor Peter Cullen that relives the 40th Apollo Anniversary and mission to explore Earths neighbor, the moon. Courtesy of NASA and YouTube)
The agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, will observe the NASA Day of Remembrance with a candle-lighting ceremony for employees, as well as a public event at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Marshall’s official visitor center, at 10 a.m. CST on Jan. 31.
NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston held a commemoration for employees at the Astronaut Memorial Grove to honor Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia crews, followed by astronaut Edgar Mitchell’s memorial tree planting ceremony on Tuesday.
To learn more: NASA is paying tribute to its fallen astronauts with special online content at:
