Ilan Ramon

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"When Ilan Ramon blasted into space on January 16, 2003, on the space shuttle "Columbia",the hopes and dreams of an entire nation went with him," stated Tanya Lee Stone in "Ilan Ramon: Israel's First Astronaut"."Ramon was the first Israeli astronaut, lifting the spirits of a war - torn country, giving pride to every Israeli and to people around the world." Their elation was cut short. On February 1, Ramon (1954 - 2003) lost his life when the "Columbia"exploded just minutes before its scheduled landing.

Background

Ilan Wolferman - who later changed his last name to Ramon - was born on June 20, 1954, in the small town of Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, Israel. Ramon and his older brother Gadi grew up in Ramat Gan and in another Israeli city called Beersheba.

Ramon's parents were refugees from Europe, according to the book Ilan Ramon: Israel's First Astronaut. Ramon's father, Eliezer Wolferman, and his family had fled from the dangers of growing anti - Semitism in Germany in 1935. Wolferman and his father later fought in Israel's War of Independence in 1948. Ramon's mother Tova, born in Poland, was a survivor of Auschwitz, the Nazi concentration camp. In 1949, she and her mother emigrated to Israel, where she met and married Ramon's father.

Trained to be a Fighter Pilot

The biography, Ilan Ramon, noted that Ramon had been a popular boy in school, excelling in all subjects, especially science and math. He developed a passion for flying after taking a ride in a friend's small plane. At 18, after graduating high school, he joined the military and signed up for flight school with the Israeli Air Force (IAF). Ramon fought in the Yom Kippur War, a three - week war with Egypt and Syria, in October, 1973. In 1974, he graduated as a fighter pilot, at the top of his class at IAF Flight School.

After flight school, the biography noted, Ramon decided to change his last name (from Wolferman), following the example of Prime Minister David Ben - Gurion, who had urged Israeli soldiers to take a Hebrew name as he had done.

Over the next nine years, Ramon received training and gained experience flying A - 4, Mirage III - C, and F - 16 aircraft. When the IAF acquired the new F - 16s, a fast, light fighter jet, Ramon was one of the first pilots chosen to form an F - 16 squadron. From 1981 - 1983, he served as the Deputy Squadron Commander B for the F - 16 Squadron.

Remarkable Air Force Career

A U.S. News & World Report article commented that Ramon ". . . was one of the best Israeli fighter jocks of his generation. He made his name in 1981, becoming the youngest of eight pilots on one of the most daring missions in IAF history - the bombing of Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor."

This mission was considered a milestone in Israeli aviation history, noted a Jerusalem Post article. The F - 16s flew over enemy Arab territory without detection by flying in a "tightly bunched formation to send off a radar signal like that of a large commercial airliner."

In 1983, Ramon, 29, took time off from the IAF to attend college at Tel Aviv University. It was here that he met and married his wife, Rona Bar Simantov. He received his bachelor of science degree in electronics and computer engineering in 1987. Ramon returned to the military in 1988, serving as a deputy squadron commander and then squadron commander. In 1994, the IAF promoted Ramon to colonel, placing him in charge of developing the weapons systems for the entire Israeli air force.

By April, 1997, Ramon had logged in more than 4,000 flight hours in Israeli military aircraft when he received astonishing news. He had been selected to become Israel's first astronaut and train for the United States space program.

Preparing for Journey to Space

In July, 1998, Ramon, his wife Rona, and their four children left Israel and moved to Texas so that he could report for training at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Joining six American astronauts, Ramon was trained on every aspect of an STS - 107 space shuttle mission, as well as for his special duty as a Payload Specialist, in charge of scientific experiments.

During its flight, Columbia's crew would conduct more than 80 biology, chemistry, physics and climate experiments, transmitting its data back to scientists on Earth. One of the main experiments Ramon ran was the Mediterranean Israeli Dust Experiment (MEIDEX). As noted in Ilan Ramon, his job was to watch for dust clouds and aim the MEIDEX camera at them whenever he saw one. Ramon's friend, scientist Joachim Joseph, who worked on MEIDEX at Tel Aviv University, said, "It's important to know where the dust is and what it is doing. Dust acts against the effect of greenhouse gases. Desert dust is also an important source of minerals for ocean life. It transfers spores, bacteria, and viruses such as influenza from continent to continent."

Honored his Heritage

Ramon began to realize the importance of his role as the first Israeli astronaut, representing Israelis and all Jews. As noted in the Jerusalem Post, Ramon said, "I know my flight is very symbolic for the people of Israel, especially the survivors, the Holocaust survivors. Because I was born in Israel, many people will see this as a dream come true. I'm kind of the proof for my parents and their generation that whatever we've been fighting for in the last century is becoming true."

To represent Israel, Ramon wore a patch of the Israeli flag on his space suit. Although not a religious person, Ramon also requested kosher meals for the mission. In the Jerusalem Post, Israeli President Moshe Katsav was quoted as saying, "Ramon became a Jewish international hero, not just because he participated in the shuttle mission, but because of the symbolism he brought to the mission by his decision to honor the Jewish heritage through the objects he brought with him and the respect he showed for the Jewish religion while in space."

He brought aboard the Columbia three special items. One was a small Torah scroll that had been given to a young boy by a Rabbi in a German concentration camp called Bergen - Belson during the Holocaust. The second item was a Mezuzah, a tiny piece of parchment with a passage from the Torah, rolled up inside a decorative container that hangs in the doorway of a Jewish home. The Mezuzah, showing a Star of David, symbol of Israel, surrounded by barbed wire, was designed by a young Israeli woman whose grandparents were Holocaust survivors.

The third item Ramon chose was a copy of a drawing by a 14 - year - old boy, Petr Ginz, who died at Auschwitz during World War II. The picture, called Moon Landscape, showed the boy's vision of Earth, as seen from the moon. As noted in the Jerusalem Post, Ramon talked about Ginz's drawing while training at Houston Space Center, "I feel that my journey fulfills the dream of Petr Ginz 58 years on. A dream that is ultimate proof of the greatness of the soul of a boy imprisoned within the ghetto walls, the walls of which could not conquer his spirit."

Jewish International Hero

On January 16, 2003, the Columbia launched into space. Millions watched the launch in Israel. Jews everywhere were celebrating. "Ilan Ramon is taking his place in the history books. One of the sons of the State of Israel will gaze at us from space," said Israeli television reporter Yonit Levy.

U.S. News & World Report reported that Ramon was already ". . . a national hero and a household name by the time he rocketed into space. Public schools taught about his exploits. A medal was struck in his honor. After 2 1/2 years of unrelenting bad news about war, terror, and hard economic times, Ramon's story was like a desperately needed holiday for Israelis."

The View from Space

Although kept busy with his work on science experiments, Ramon reveled in the beauty and wonders that he saw. As noted in Ilan Ramon, he said, "The world looks marvelous from up here, so peaceful, so wonderful and so fragile. The atmosphere is so thin and fragile, and I think all of us have to keep it clean and good. It saves our life and gives our life." Ramon also talked about his homeland: "The quiet that envelops space makes the beauty even more powerful, and I only hope that the quiet can one day spread to my country."

The Jerusalem Post reported that Ilan sent an email from space to Israel president Moshe Katsav: "Mr. President . . . please convey my deep appreciation to all Israel's citizens, and let them know that I am honored to be their first representative ever in space. In our mission, we have a variety of international scientific experiments and scientists working . . . for the benefit of all mankind. From space our world looks as one unit without borders. So let me call from up here in space let's work our way for peace and better life for every one on Earth."

Shattered Dreams

On February 1, 2003, the Columbia was headed back to earth on schedule, when a problem developed. NASA's ground control noticed that temperatures had begun to rise in the shuttle's brakes, wheels, and wing flaps. Then the sensors stopped working. As described in Ilan Ramon, "At 9:00 a.m. all communication was lost. Bright flashes and loud booms quickly followed the silence. People in Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas saw the shuttle blasting apart."

At a little after 2:00 p.m., United States President George W. Bush told the world, "The Columbia is lost; there are no survivors." Everyone grieved for the seven lost astronauts. "In Israel," Ilan Ramon noted, "headlines read, 'Crying for Ilan' and 'Pieces of the Dream.' People lit candles, made signs, played sad music, and held memorials in his honor."

Thousands of people from around the world sent their condolences to the family of Ramon. "Poems, prayers, and tributes were sent from Iran, Ireland, Scandinavia, Germany, France, Argentina, India, and the Palestinian Authority areas," reported the Jerusalem Post.

In Ilan Ramon, Joachim Joseph said, "I think Ilan represented the good part in each and every one of us. He was a true Israeli hero - brave, straightforward and optimistic. He was a good role model for us."

A funeral was held at Lod Air Force Base, near Ben - Gurion Airport, in Israel on February 11, 2003. Ramon was buried at the Moshav Nahalal cemetery. During a very moving ceremony, reported the Jerusalem Post, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said, "Ilan, the son of a mother who survived the Holocaust, and a father who is a veteran of the War of Independence, was a courageous combat pilot and an outstanding officer, and was among the best of our sons and warriors. On his last mission he soared higher than any other Israeli, and realized his dream."

Joseph remembered Ramon as "active and quick and intelligent, caring, so it was impossible not to like him . . . When you saw him, you immediately took to him. I particularly liked the way he interacted with his children."

Rona, Ramon's widow, later told a television reporter, "We take comfort that Ilan left [us] at his peak moment in his favorite place, with people he loved." She added, "He wasn't afraid. He left us with a feeling of confidence . . . everyone who knows him, knows that it's impossible to remember him without a smile on his face, and we will continue with that same smile."

The United States posthumously awarded Ramon the Congressional Space Medal of Honor, the NASA Space Flight Medal, and the Distinguished Public Service Medal.

Books

Stone, Tanya Lee, Ilan Ramon: Israel's First Astronaut, Millbrook Press, 2003.

Periodicals

Jerusalem Post, February 1, 2003; February 2, 2003; February 3, 2003; February 11, 2003.

Time, February 10, 2003.

U.S. News & World Report, May 5, 2003.

Online

National Aeronautics and Space Administration website,http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/PS/ramon.html (December 1, 2004).

"Ilan Ramon," National Aeronautics and Space Administration website,http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/archives/sts-107/memorial/ramon.html (December 1, 2004).

Ilan Ramon אילן רמון
ISA astronaut
Nationality	Israeli
Born	June 20, 1954 Ramat Gan, Israel
Died	February 1, 2003(2003-02-01) (aged 48) Palestine, Texas [1]
Previous occupation	Fighter pilot
Rank	Colonel, Israeli Air Force
Time in space	15d 22h 20m
Selection	1996 NASA Group
Missions	STS-107
Mission insignia

Ilan Ramon (June 20, 1954 – February 1, 2003; Hebrew: אילן רמון‎, born Ilan Wolferman)^[2] was a fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force, and later the first Israeli astronaut.

Ramon was the space shuttle payload specialist of STS-107, the fatal mission of Columbia, in which he and six other crew members were killed in the re-entry accident. Ramon is the only foreign recipient of the United States Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

Contents 1 Personal life 2 Education 3 Air Force career 4 NASA experience 4.1 NASA on-ground trainings 4.2 Space flight 4.3 "Miracle" diary 5 Family 6 Awards and honors 7 Namesakes (in Israel unless specified otherwise) 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

Personal life

Ramon was born in Ramat Gan, Israel, and grew up in Beersheba. His mother and grandmother were survivors of the Auschwitz concentration camp.^[3] His first name, Ilan, means "tree" in Hebrew.^[4] Ilan changed his last name from Wolferman when he joined the IAF just as many other Israeli aviators.

Education

Ramon graduated from high school in 1972. In 1987, he graduated with a B.Sc. degree in electronics and computer engineering from Tel Aviv University.^[5]

Air Force career

Nose of F-16A flown by Ilan Ramon in Operation Opera, showing the triangular emblem of the attack on Osirak, and a Syrian Air Force roundel 'killmark'.

Ilan Ramon was a Colonel (Aluf Mishne) and fighter pilot in the Israeli Air Force, with thousands of hours flying experience. In 1974, he graduated as a fighter pilot from the Israel Air Force (IAF) Flight School. From 1974–76 he participated in A-4 Basic Training and Operations. 1976–80 was spent in Mirage III-C training and operations. In 1980, as one of the IAF's establishment team of the first F-16 Squadron in Israel, he attended the F-16 Training Course at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. From 1981–83, he served as the Deputy Squadron Commander B, F-16 Squadron.^[5]

In 1981 he was the youngest pilot taking part in Operation Opera, Israel's strike against Iraq's unfinished Osiraq nuclear reactor. The facility was destroyed, killing ten Iraqi soldiers and one French researcher.^[6][7]

After attending the Tel Aviv University, he served as Deputy Squadron Commander A, 119 Squadron, flying the F-4 Phantom (1988–90). During 1990, he attended the Squadron Commanders Course and between 1990 and 1992, commanded 117 Squadron, flying the F-16. From 1992–94, he was Head of the Aircraft Branch in the Operations Requirement Department. In 1994, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel and assigned as Head of the Department of Operational Requirement for Weapon Development and Acquisition. He stayed at this post until 1998. Ramon accumulated over 3,000 flight hours on the A-4, Mirage III-C, and F-4, and over 1,000 flight hours on the F-16.^[8]

NASA experience

Payload specialist Ilan Ramon

NASA on-ground trainings

In 1997, Ramon was selected as a Payload Specialist. He was designated to train as prime for a space shuttle mission with a payload that included a multispectral camera for recording desert aerosol (dust). In July 1998, he reported for training at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas, where he trained until 2003. He flew aboard STS-107, logging 15 days, 22 hours and 20 minutes in space.

Space flight

Ilan Ramon photographed aboard Space Shuttle Columbia, January 26, 2003

STS-107 Columbia (January 16 – February 1, 2003). The 16-day flight was a dedicated science and research mission. Working 24 hours a day, in two alternating shifts, crew successfully conducted approximately 80 experiments.

Although considered a secular Jew, Ramon reportedly sought to follow Jewish observances while in orbit. In an interview he said, "I feel I am representing all Jews and all Israelis." He was the first spaceflight participant to request kosher food. He reportedly sought advice from a Chabad Lubavitch rabbi, Zvi Konikov, about how to observe the Jewish Sabbath in space, as the period between sunrises in orbit is approximately 90 minutes. This was referenced by the words "Jerusalem we have a problem" in Rabbi Konikov's speech at the Kennedy Space Center Memorial for Columbia on February 7, 2003.^[9]

The STS-107 mission ended abruptly when Space Shuttle Columbia was destroyed and its crew perished during re-entry, 16 minutes before scheduled landing.

Aboard STS-107, Ramon carried a pencil sketch, "Moon Landscape", drawn by 16-year-old Petr Ginz, who died in Auschwitz. Ramon also took with him a microfiche copy of the Torah given to him by Israeli president Moshe Katsav and a miniature Torah scroll (from the Holocaust) that was given him by Prof. Yehoyachin Yosef, a Bergen Belsen survivor.^[10] Ramon asked the 1939 Club, a Holocaust survivor organization in Los Angeles, for a symbol of the Holocaust to take into outer space with him. A barbed wire mezuzah by the San Francisco artist Aimee Golant was selected. Ramon also took with him a dollar of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson.^[11] Ramon and the rest of the Columbia crew died over East Texas in the Southern United States during entry into Earth's atmosphere, 16 minutes prior to scheduled landing. ^[5]

"Miracle" diary

37 pages from the diary he was keeping while in orbit survived the crash and were returned to his widow, Rona, who has shared an excerpt with the Israeli public in a display at Jerusalem's Israel Museum.^[12] Rona Ramon brought it to Israel Museum forensic experts. Only two pages were displayed, one containing Ramon's notes, and the other is a copy of the Kiddush prayer.^[12] Curator Yigal Zalmona^[13] said the diary was partially restored in one year, and needed four more, for police scientists to decipher 80% of the text. Zalmona stated: "The diary survived extreme heat in the explosion, extreme atmospheric cold, and then "was attacked by microorganisms and insects. It's almost a miracle that it survived — it's incredible. There is 'no rational explanation' for how it was recovered when most of the shuttle was not, he said."^[12] Ramon wrote on the last day of the journal:

“

"Today was the first day that I felt that I am truly living in space. I have become a man who lives and works in space."

”

Inscribed in black ink and pencil, it covered just the first six days of the 16-day mission. The papers remained white even though, exposed at high speed 37 miles (60 km) above the Earth, they should have super-heated and burned.^[14] Other fragile items withstood the disaster as well, some even in a better shape, like a Caenorhabditis elegans worm culture,^[15][16][17] the only survivors of the accident are a damaged hard disk drive.^[18][19] This is a common occurrence in the debris trail of air disasters, where certain parts or objects in the aircraft are blown out of the vehicle and fall freely; when the Columbia disintegrated, she was already an aircraft (if exceptionally high and fast still) rather than a spacecraft.

Family

Ramon was survived by his wife Rona and their four children, who were in Florida at the time of the accident. His eldest son, Captain Asaf Ramon, died on September 13, 2009, aged 21, during a routine training flight while piloting his F-16A, 3 months after graduating from the IAF flight school as the top cadet in his class.^[20][21]

Awards and honors

• Military decorations:
  • Yom Kippur War (1973)
  • Operation Peace of the Galilee (1982)
  • F-16 1,000 Flight Hours (1992).
• Posthumously awarded:
  • NASA Space Flight Medal
  • Congressional Space Medal of Honor (Ramon is the only non-U.S. citizen recipient to date) ^[22]
  • Chief Of Staff Medal of Appreciation

In 2005, he was voted the 5th-greatest Israeli of all time, in a poll by the Israeli news website Ynet to determine whom the general public considered the 200 Greatest Israelis.^[23]

Namesakes (in Israel unless specified otherwise)

Ilan Ramon's grave in Nahalal

• Timna Airport to be named in honor of Ilan and Assaf Ramon^[24]
• Asteroid 51828 Ilanramon
• Ramon Hill, in Columbia Hills, Mars
• Ramon Hall, in the Columbia Village apartments, Florida Institute of Technology^[25]
• Ilan Ramon Youth Physics Center, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba
• Ramon Control Tower, Ben-Gurion Airport
• Ilan Ramon Elementary School, Jerusalem
• Ilan Ramon Elementary School, Netanya
• Ramon Elementary School, Modi'in
• Ramon High school, Hod Hasharon
• Ilan Ramon Junior High, Kokhav Ya'ir^[26]
• Ilan Ramon Emergency Center, Kaplan Hospital, Rehovot
• Ilan Ramon Boulevard^[27][28] Vaughan, Ontario (Canada)
• Ramon Park, Givat Shmuel
• Ilan Ramon Park, space-themed playground, Beersheba
• Ilan Ramon AZA #380, Boulder, Colorado
• Ilan Ramon BBYO #5378, Oviedo, Florida
• Ramon AZA #195 (Named after Ilan and Asaf Ramon, his son) Sunnyvale, California
• Ilan Ramon Crescent, Cote St. Luc, Montreal, Quebec (Canada)
• Ilan Ramon Day School, Agoura, California (USA)

See also

• Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
• Columbia: The Tragic Loss, a documentary that focuses on Ilan Ramon

References

1. ^ Nancy Atkinson (OCTOBER 6, 2008 1). "Astronaut Diary Survives Columbia Accident". Universe Today. http://www.universetoday.com/19198/astronaut-diary-survives-columbia-accident/. 
2. ^ Stone, Tanya Lee (October 1, 2003). Ilan Ramon: Israel's First Astronaut. Kar-Ben Publishing. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-7613-2888-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=a8G9I_a2s9oC&pg=PA10. Retrieved May 26, 2011. 
3. ^ Service, Haaretz (April 2, 2008). "Haaretz". Haaretz. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=253327&contrassID=2&subContrassID=1&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
4. ^ Mike Campbell. "Behind the Name". Behindthename.com. http://www.behindthename.com/name/ilan. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
5. ^ ^{a b c} "Payload Specialist Astronaut Bio: Ilan Ramon, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)". Jsc.nasa.gov. http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/PS/ramon.html. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
6. ^ Service, Haaretz (February 1, 2003). "Astronaut Ilan Ramon's son dies in IAF crash, September 13, 2009". Haaretz. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1114256.html. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
7. ^ "Factfile: How Osirak was bombed". BBC News. June 5, 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/5020778.stm. Retrieved May 5, 2010. 
8. ^ "Ibid". Jsc.nasa.gov. http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/PS/ramon.html. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
9. ^ Konikov, Zvi. "official website". Chabad.org. http://www.chabad.org/multimedia/media_cdo/aid/633325/jewish/Remembering-Ilan-Ramon.htm. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
10. ^ Lehman-Wilzig, Tami; Craig Orback (2003). Keeping the Promise. MN: Kar-Ben publishing. ISBN 1-58013-118-2. http://books.google.com/books?id=4j_l4bKC8SAC&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1. Retrieved May 2, 2011. 
11. ^ Brown, Irene (January 27, 2003). "Israeli astronaut busy up in space". Jta.org. http://jta.org/news/article/2003/01/27/9859/Israeliastronautto. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
12. ^ ^{a b c} Ohm, Shawna (October 3, 2008). "Astronaut's diary goes on display in Jerusalem". Associate Press. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-10-03-astronaut-diary_N.htm. Retrieved October 23, 2011. 
13. ^ "Photos of "miracle" diary '''here'''". yahoo.com. http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/slideshow/photo//081003/481/e19cacc4165d4e6b83e2b9dc67401ad0/#photoViewer=/081003/481/e19cacc4165d4e6b83e2b9dc67401ad0. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
14. ^ "''The Guardian'' report of the diary that survived shuttle blast". London: Guardian. October 4, 2008. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/04/israelandthepalestinians.spaceexploration. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
15. ^ Szewczyk, Nathaniel, et al. (2005). "Caenorhabditis elegans Survives Atmospheric Breakup of STS-107, Space Shuttle Columbia". Mary Ann Liebert, Astrobiology. http://www.liebertpub.com/prdetails.aspx?pr_id=428. Retrieved November 2, 2006. 
16. ^ "Worms survived Columbia disaster". BBC News. May 1, 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2992123.stm. Retrieved December 16, 2005. 
17. ^ Worms Survive Shuttle Disaster Fall 2003
18. ^ Fonseca, Brian (May 7, 2008). "Shuttle Columbia's hard drive data recovered from crash site". Computerworld.com. http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9083718. Retrieved September 1, 2009. 
19. ^ "The Physics of Whipped Cream". Science.nasa.gov. http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/25apr_cvx2.htm. Retrieved September 1, 2009. 
20. ^ "Jet crash kills Israel hero's son". BBC News. September 13, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8253465.stm. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
21. ^ Death of Ilan Ramon's son, Asaf Ramon (hebrew)
22. ^ "Congressional Space Medal of Honor". NASA. April 28, 2006. http://history.nasa.gov/spacemedal.htm. Retrieved December 5, 2009. 
23. ^ גיא בניוביץ' (June 20, 1995). "הישראלי מספר 1: יצחק רבין – תרבות ובידור". Ynet. http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3083171,00.html. Retrieved July 10, 2011. 
24. ^ Ibrahim, Raymond (July 18, 2010). "New Timna airport to be named after Ilan and Assaf Ramon". Jpost.com. http://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=181807. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
25. ^ "Florida Tech dedicates dorms to Columbia 7". http://web.archive.org/web/20080118103500/http://www.floridatoday.com/columbia/columbiastory2N1029TECH.htm. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
26. ^ Ilan Ramon Junior High, Kochav-Yair
27. ^ Shoshana Poznansky (May 7, 2007). "UJA Foundation: Lag B'omer festival". Jewishtoronto.net. http://www.jewishtoronto.net/page.html?ArticleID=145300. Retrieved September 1, 2011. 
28. ^ UJA Foundation

External links

• Official biography at NASA
• Photo of Ilan Ramon with Chabad Rabbi Zvi Konikov
• Ilan Ramon STS-107 Crew Memorial
• A collection of articles about Ilan Ramon
• Ilan Ramon Memorial pages in the Israel Science and Technology Directory
• Spacefacts biography of Ilan Ramon
• Excerpts from Ilan Ramon's diary
• Ilan Ramon at Find a Grave
• Ilan Ramon – Obituary and public tribute

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ilan Ramon

v t e Congressional Space Medal of Honor Michael P. Anderson Neil Armstrong Frank Borman David M. Brown Roger Chaffee Kalpana Chawla Laurel B. Clark Charles "Pete" Conrad, Jr. Robert Crippen John Glenn Virgil "Gus" Grissom Rick Husband Greg Jarvis James Lovell Shannon Lucid Christa McAuliffe Willie McCool Ronald McNair Ellison Onizuka Ilan Ramon Judith Resnik Dick Scobee Alan Shepard William Shepherd Michael Smith Thomas P. Stafford Edward White John W. Young Italics indicate the award was bestowed posthumously

v t e STS-107 Main articles Space Shuttle Columbia Space Shuttle Columbia disaster Space Shuttle external tank Space Shuttle thermal protection system Crew Husband (Cmdr) McCool Brown Chawla Anderson Clark Ramon See also Columbia Accident Investigation Board SpaceHab FREESTAR Hitchhiker Extended Duration Orbiter

v t e Israeli space program Reconnaissance satellites Ofeq Ofeq 7 Ofeq 9 Earth observation EROS TecSAR Communications satellites AMOS AMOS 1 AMOS 2 AMOS 3 AMOS 5 Research satellites Techsat Sloshsat Satellites in development Venus TAUVEX OPsat INSAT AMOS 4 Launch vehicle Shavit Shavit 2 Space observatory Wise Observatory Bareket observatory Givatayim Observatory Ilan Ramon youth physics center Primary spaceports Palmachim Airbase People Yitzhak Ben Yisrael Yuval Ne'eman Moshe Bar-Lev Noah Brosch Astronauts Ilan Ramon

Persondata
Name	Ramon, Ilan
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	June 20, 1954
Place of birth	Ramat Gan, Israel
Date of death	February 1, 2003
Place of death	over Texas

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