Finding Columbia's Data Recorder

This is Columbia's data recorder - one of the most significant pieces of located debris.

Chauncy Birdtail, a Montana fire fighter who was helping with the Columbia search effort, found this recorder near Hemphill, Texas.  The box, which weighs about fifty-eight pounds, was buried roughly three inches deep in a slope which had been previously searched.

When it was on board the shuttle, the recorder was located underneath a crew member's seat (in the orbiter's most protected area).

Credits

NASA photo.

Information, from the Columbia Accident Investigation Board's report.