NASA astronaut on Space Station during 9/11 attack describes heart-wrenching experience

NASA recently shared a heartfelt letter written by Frank Culbertson, the only American not on Earth during the 9/11 attacks. Culbertson, who was aboard the International Space Station at the time, penned his emotional reflections in the days following the tragic events

.From his vantage point 250 miles above, Culbertson also captured haunting images of a smoke plume rising from Manhattan, documenting the aftermath of the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers

On Tuesday, NASA released his letter, noting, “The following is the text of a letter from Expedition Three Commander Frank L. Culbertson (Captain, USN Retired), reflecting on the events of September 11.” Culbertson’s words offer a deeply personal account of how he learned about the attacks and processed the unfolding tragedy

In the letter, Culbertson recalls the moment he was informed by the flight surgeon: “Well, obviously the world changed today. The flight surgeon told me they were having a very bad day on the ground. I had no idea…” He continued, “He described the situation to me as best he knew it at ~0900 CDT. I was flabbergasted, then horrified. My first thought was that this wasn’t a real conversation, that I was still listening to one of my Tom Clancy tapes

Still grappling with the magnitude of the news, Culbertson rushed to find a window offering a view of New York City. Grabbing the closest camera, he saw the smoke billowing from lower Manhattan. “The smoke seemed to have an odd bloom to it at the base of the column that was streaming south of the city," he wrote. "After reading one of the news articles we just received, I believe we were …”looking at NY around the time of, or shortly after, the collapse of the second tower. How horrible

Culbertson expressed the overwhelming sense of isolation, being the only American in space during such a catastrophic moment. “It’s difficult to describe how it feels to be the only American completely off the planet at a time such as this. The feeling that I should be there with all of you, dealing with this, helping in some way, is overwhelming," he shared. “I know that we are on the threshold (or beyond) of a terrible shift in the history of the world

He recognized that September 11, 2001, would leave a permanent scar on history, affecting not only those directly impacted but the world at large. "We will find ourselves feeling differently about dozens of things, including probably space exploration, unfortunately

Reflecting on the tragedy from his distant vantage point, Culbertson wrote, "It’s horrible to see smoke pouring from wounds in your own country from such a fantastic vantage point

In a somber note, Culbertson later learned that one of the pilots killed in the attacks, Charles Burlingame, had been his Naval Academy classmate. Both men had trained as aeronautical engineering majors and served as F-4 fighter pilots

Culbertson’s letter captures the profound emotional toll of witnessing such a dark day in American history from space, as well as the personal connections that made the tragedy even more poignant