SEPTEMBER 11, 2022
NASA shared a somber image on Twitter Sunday as the world reflected on the thousands of people killed when a terrorist group launched coordinated attacks against the United States of America (USA) by hijacking and crashing commercial airline planes at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, 21 years ago on September 11, 2001.
“The attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 were a national tragedy that resulted in a staggering loss of life and a significant change in American culture. Each year, we pause and remember,” NASA’s website stated.
“On this 21st anniversary of that terrible day, we honour the victims and heroes of the 9/11 terrorist attacks,” NASA said in a tweet.
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The photos were taken by Expedition 3 Commander Frank Culbertson who was aboard the International Space Station at the time of the attacks, and the only American on the crew. As soon as he learned of the attacks, he began documenting the event in photographs because the station was flying over the New York City area. He captured incredible images in the minutes and hours following the event.
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The following day, he posted a public letter that captured his initial thoughts of the events as they unfolded. “The world changed today. What I say or do is very minor compared to the significance of what happened to our country today when it was attacked.”
On Sunday, US President Joe Biden marked the 21st anniversary of the September 11 attacks, laying a wreath at the Pentagon in a somber commemoration held under a steady rain.
First lady Jill Biden also spoke Sunday at the Flight 93 National Memorial Observance in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband went to New York City for a commemoration ceremony at the National September 11th Memorial.
The 9/11 attacks claimed the lives of 2,977 victims, including 343 Fire Department (FDNY) firefighters, 23 members of the NYPD and 37 Port Authority police officers, and countless others.
It’s a solemn reminder of the deadliest terror attack on US soil.
