Posted: Tue, Aug 26, 2003, 10:34 AM ET (1434 GMT)
The Columbia Accident Investigation Board published its final report on the shuttle Columbia accident Tuesday morning, blaming NASA's organizational culture as much as any technical issues for the accident. The 250-page report, published on the CAIB’s web site, is labeled Volume 1; subsequent volumes, to be published in the future, will contain additional technical reports. Volume 1 provides a comprehensive look at the history of the shuttle program, the STS-107 mission, and the investigation into the causes of the fatal accident. It also includes a number of recommendations, some of which were published prior to the final report, that cover both return-to-flight activities as well as ongoing operations of the shuttle. The board will discuss the report at a press conference later Friday, and NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe is expected to react to the report both in interviews later Tuesday as well as at a press conference Wednesday morning.

Related Links:

•  CAIB press release
•  Final report (PDF format, 10MB)
•  Report executive summary (via Spaceflight Now)
•  AP article
•  Reuters article