On February 1st 2003, the American shuttle Columbia exploded as it returned to earth. On board, seven American astronauts from mission STS-107: two women and five men.
No one really realized it but sixteen days earlier during takeoff, a piece of the shuttle had broken off and seriously damaged the aircraft.
It is the tragic fate of an extraordinary rocket that we are going to tell you about.
How could a few grams of foam lead to the disintegration of this 68-ton space engine?
Why could this accident not have been anticipated?
Why was no rescue mission planned?
Thanks to the technical expertise of the greatest astronauts and the federal agents responsible for the investigation, but also thanks to the testimonies of the families, we will decipher every second of this disaster.
We will try to understand how the Columbia shuttle, considered the flagship of American aerospace, could have transformed into a ball of fire out of control...


First broadcast:
A documentary by François Tribolet

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