Senator Bill Nelson: NASA Advisors Had Warned for Years About Such a Disaster

Senator Bill Nelson, an American senator who had previously traveled to space with one of America's spacecraft, stated today that NASA was in dire need of funding due to budget constraints, which could have been used to ensure the safety of the spacecraft. He holds both the Republican and former Democratic administrations responsible. In an interview with CNN, Senator Bill Nelson mentioned that he had warned NASA advisors for years about the possibility of such a disaster. Meanwhile, President Bush has summoned Sean O'Keefe, the head of NASA, to the White House for discussions regarding the Columbia spacecraft's crash. A White House spokesperson indicated that Mr. Bush is paying special attention to the Columbia disaster and wants to understand the reasons behind the disintegration of the spacecraft that occurred over Texas on Saturday, resulting in the deaths of all seven astronauts on board. Officials say they have made progress in their investigations; however, they state that it will take weeks to gather evidence to clarify the causes of the incident. NASA officials report that the information obtained indicates an unusual increase in temperature in parts of the left wing of the spacecraft just minutes before its disintegration, which subsequently increased the spacecraft's stress. NASA has appointed a retired four-star general, Admiral Harold Gehman, as the head of a separate investigation to determine the causes of the Columbia spacecraft's crash. Admiral Gehman was also in charge of the investigation into the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000.