As long as I am marking these sad anniversaries, I should note that, three years ago today, we lost the orbiter Columbia along with astronauts Rick D. Husband, William C. McCool, Michael P. Anderson, Ilan Ramon, Kalpana Chawla, David M. Brown, Laurel Clark.

This tragedy brought into focus, I think, the follow of putting all of our manned exploration eggs in one reusable basket, especially one that was largely a compromise design based on forty-year-old technology. The shuttle program has never delivered on its original promises and NASA seems unable to take a step backward (expendable vehicles) to go forward.

Hopefully, the legacy of their loss will be a committment to new ideas. Otherwise, the 21st century may be remembered as the time the United States conceded its leadership in outer space.

We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them — this morning, as they prepared for their journey, and waved good-bye, and “slipped the surly bonds of earth” to “touch the face of God.”

On January 28, 1986, I was a college junior in the middle of winter break, working in the campus bookstore. As I was pushing a cart load of used books from the warehouse someone came out and said, “The Space Shuttle exploded!” I dashed over to the student union and learned that person was terribly correct.

Before I was a movie geek, I was a space geek. I still am but, sadly, there’s a lot less space travel these days to be geeky about. On that horrible Tuesday, 20 years ago today, watching those two lonely exhaust trails spiral away from a cloud of smoke and debris was a like a kick to the gut.

Anyway, I just had to pay tribute to seven individuals who gave their lives for the belief that discovery is the greatest adventure.