David M. Brown
David McDowell Brown (April 16, 1956 – February 1, 2003) was a United States Navy captain and a NASA astronaut. He died on his first spaceflight, when the Space Shuttle "Columbia" (STS-107) disintegrated during orbital reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. Brown became an astronaut in 1996, but had not served on a space mission prior to the "Columbia" disaster. Brown was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
Brown, the 1986 recipient of the Navy Operational Flight Surgeon of the Year award, received numerous decorations including:
The symbol indicates a posthumous award.
STS-9
"Columbia" landed on Runway 17 at Edwards Air Force Base on December 8, 1983, at 3:47 pm PST, having completed 166 orbits and travelled over the course of its mission. Right before landing, two of the orbiter's three auxiliary power units caught fire due to a hydrazine leak, but the orbiter nonetheless landed successfully. "Columbia" was ferried back to KSC on December 15. The leak was later discovered after it had burned itself out and caused major damage to the compartment. The shuttle was then sent off for an extensive renovation and upgrade program to bring it up to date with the newer "Challenger" orbiter as well as the upcoming "Discovery" and "Atlantis". As a result, "Columbia" would not fly at all during 1984-85.