Colonel Rick Husband (USAF), Spac Shuttle Columbia Commander, was from Amarillo, Texas. He was married, with two children. He enjoyed singing, water and snow skiing, cycling, and spending time with his family.
"It's been pretty much a lifelong dream and just a thrill to be able to get to actually live it out,” he said about becoming an astronaut and flying in the space shuttle, in a preflight interview. The former test pilot was finally selected to the Astronaut Corp on his fourth try in 1994. "I think a lot of it has to do with being in the right place at the right time, for starters."
This was Husband’s second space shuttle flight and first as flight commander. Just days before the disaster, he had memorialized the astronauts lost in years past.
Commander William (Willie) McCool (USN), space shuttle pilot, was born in San Diego, California, but grew up in Lubbock, Texas. He was married with three sons. He enjoyed running, mountain biking, back country hiking/camping, swimming, playing guitar, chess.
"There is so much more than what I ever expected. It's beyond imagination, until you actually get up and see it and experience it and feel it,” he reported during a PBS interview during the mission.
After being selected as an astronaut in 1996, this was his first mission.
Lieutenant Colonel Michael P. Anderson (USAF), space shuttle mission specialist, was born in Plattsburgh, New York but considered Spokane, Washington, to be his hometown. He was married and enjoyed photography, chess, computers, and tennis.
Anderson was selected in 1994 as one of a handful of black astronauts. In 1989, he flew in the space shuttle Endeavour for mission STS-89 to the Russian Space Station Mir.
"I take the risk because I think what we're doing is really important. If you look at this research flight and if you really take an opportunity to look at each experiment ... the potential yield that we have is really tremendous. For me, it's the fact that what I'm doing can have great consequences and great benefits for everyone, for mankind."
Dr. Kalpana Chawla, space shuttle mission Specialist, was born in Karnal, India. She was married and enjoyed flying, hiking, back-packing, and reading. She held Certificated Flight Instructor's license with airplane and glider ratings, Commercial Pilot's licenses for single- and multi-engine land and seaplanes, and Gliders, and instrument rating for airplanes. She enjoyed flying aerobatics and tail-wheel airplanes.
After being selected as an astronaut in 1994, she became the first Indian woman in space aboard the space shuttle Columbia in 1997. STS-107 was her second mission.
"When you look at the stars and the galaxy, you feel that you are not just from any particular piece of land, but from the solar system."
Captain David Brown (USN), space shuttle mission specialist, was born in Arlington, Virginia. He was single and had, perhaps, the most colorful life of all the astronauts. He enjoyed flying and bicycle touring. He was a four year collegiate varsity gymnast. While in college he performed in the Circus Kingdom as an acrobat, 7 foot unicyclist and stilt walker.
"I made a decision that is part of my job, I would incur some real risk as a routine part of my job when I joined the Navy and started flying ... airplanes off of ships, particularly airplanes off of ships at night. And I think that was a decision that I made some years ago and the decision to go fly in space is just an extension of that."
After being selected as an astronaut in 1996, this was his first space shuttle flight.