CU Boulder hosting annual memorial to crews lost on Challenger, Columbia shuttles

This Sunday, cadets from the Colonel Ellison S. Onizuka Squadron of Air Force ROTC Detachment 105 will conduct their annual memorial at the University of Colorado in honor of those who lost their lives on board the Challenger and Columbia space shuttles.

Onizuka and astronaut Kalpana Chawla were CU  alumni who lost their lives in the Challenger and Columbia disasters, respectively.

Onizuka was on board the Challenger when it broke apart 73 seconds after its launch on Jan. 28, 1986. He earned his commission as an officer in the U.S. Air Force through CU, in ROTC Detachment 105.

Kalpana Chawla was on board the Columbia when it broke apart upon its descent to Earth on Feb. 1, 2003. Chawla earned both her master’s degree and Ph.D. from CU.

The event will commence at 9:38 a.m. in front fo the CU Regent Center to reflect the exact moment the Challenger broke apart. The cadets will then march silently through campus, and end at the plaque commemorating Onizuka and Chawla. One rose for each person who lost their lives on both missions will be placed on the plaque in their memory.