Full coverage: The Columbia Disaster

Complete coverage of the space shuttle’s breakup and the death of its crew on Feb. 1, 2003. Included below is a six-part series from December 2003 that was the product of six months of reporting, encompassing 130 interviews with accident investigators, scientists and NASA employees across the United States.

Front from left are astronauts Rick D. Husband, mission commander; Kalpana Chawla, mission specialist; and William C. McCool, pilot. Rear from left are David M. Brown, Laurel B. Clark, and Michael P. Anderson, all mission specialists; and Ilan Ramon, payload specialist, representing the Israeli Space Agency. (NASA / AFP/Getty Images)