Kennedy Space Center
On February 1, 2003, "Columbia" and her crew of seven were lost during re-entry over Texas during the STS-107 mission (the 113th shuttle flight); a vehicle breakup triggered by damage sustained during launch from Pad 39A on January 16, when a piece of foam insulation from the orbiter's external fuel tank struck the orbiter's left wing. During reentry, the damage created a hole allowing hot gases to melt the wing structure. Like the "Challenger" disaster, the resulting investigation and modifications interrupted shuttle flight operations at KSC for more than two years until the STS-114 launch on July 26, 2005.
District of Columbia retrocession
The District of Columbia retrocession was the process of returning to the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia a part of the land that had been ceded to the federal government of the United States for the purpose of creating its federal district and capital city. The land was taken in 1790. It was returned, after many stages of federal and state approval, in March of 1847.