posted 05-09-2005 04:17 PM               

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Images of astronauts in action, beamed home via NASA cameras, have long been a staple of American television. But more candid, casual scenes are rare, and these are the focus of a program spotlighting the close-knit crew of the space shuttle Columbia.

Airing a week before shuttle flights are scheduled to resume with a planned May 22 launch, "Astronaut Diaries: Remembering the Columbia Shuttle Crew" features footage shot by astronaut Dave Brown, an Arlington native who was aboard Columbia's fatal 2003 mission.

Brown, a 1974 graduate of Yorktown High School in Arlington, had planned to make a film about his lifelong dream of becoming an astronaut, and recorded fellow crew members during their training.

Besides time spent in the simulator, Brown also photographed bike rides, high-fives and the excitement of launch-day preparations. "He wanted to be able to distribute something via the astronauts," said Brown's brother, Doug. "When they'd go out to speak, this would be a way for them to have a tape about the training."

The crew -- Michael Anderson, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark, Rick Husband, Willie McCool, Ilan Ramon, and Brown -- perished on Feb. 1, 2003, when Columbia, the oldest member of the shuttle fleet, disintegrated when it reentered the Earth's atmosphere.

In "Astronaut Diaries," Brown's footage -- shot on digital videocassettes -- is coupled with interviews with astronauts' family members, who reflect on the astronauts' observations throughout their two-year wait for the flight.

Brown's brother hopes the program will show what the Columbia astronauts were like as people. The show, he said, "isn't an essay on 'Why did the shuttle crash?' or 'What is intelligent risk?' This is about leaving a legacy."

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posted 05-10-2005 03:06 AM               

I desperately want to see this. Could anyone please get me a copy?

Gareth

posted 05-10-2005 07:19 AM               

If all goes well, I'll make a VHS videotape of it-I promise you a copy. (It won't take as long as "The Cape") I'll use it to show my students that astronauts ar regular folks -just passionate about accomplishing their goals.

Tim

posted 05-10-2005 11:15 AM               

I'll tape it just in case!

posted 05-10-2005 11:26 AM               

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Originally posted by tegwilym:
Is this a new show or the same one that was on about 6 months ago or so?
Tom

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Never mind. I searched the web and see that it IS a new one. I should look before asking....

posted 05-13-2005 09:12 AM               

Documentary Provides Intimate Look at Columbia's Last Crew (Space.com)

A behind-the-scenes look at ill-fated Columbia crew (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

posted 05-13-2005 01:13 PM            

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posted 05-15-2005 05:59 PM               

If you haven't seen the Astronaut Diaries episode on The Science Channel featuring David Brown's films taken during training for Columbia's final flight, you're truly missing something special. Beg, borrow or ... hey, even steal (OK, going a little far on THAT count) ... a copy if you have to.

It is tremendous, one of the top two or three space documentaries I've ever seen, and certainly the most intimate. Viewers are taken inside the transfer van all the way to the way to the launch pad, and then into the elevator for the ride up to the 195-foot level, where the astronauts enter the Shuttle. The up-close views of the Shuttle are beautiful ... you've NEVER seen shots like this before. Never.

The interviews with family members are beyond touching. When Brown's mother speaks of her son telling her that launch and re-entry are the scariest times, you can't help but get a lump in your throat. When the actual in-flight video conversation between Willie McCool and his wife is shown, it's heart-breaking.

The now-familiar scenes of the astronauts on the flight deck during re-entry are included, but somehow, they just seem more fitting here.