mamakin
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Posts: 7611
Registered: 7-9-2002
Location: Hotlanta!~CB/CP~Da BUSH
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Mood: ~My Grass is Blue - OHHHH KENTUCKY!~
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Columbia, the space shuttle
Our United states has had yet another shock.
Commander
Rick Husband has just one other space flight under his belt and already he’s flying as commander. That’s a rarity. "I think a lot of it has to do with
being in the right place at the right time, for starters," says Husband, 45, an Air Force colonel from Amarillo, Texas. The former test pilot was
selected as an astronaut in 1994 on his fourth try. Space flight has been his lifelong passion, along with singing. Husband, a baritone, has
barbershop quartet experience and has been singing in church choirs for years.
Pilot
William McCool says one of the most nerve-racking parts of training was learning to draw blood — from others. Columbia’s two pilots are exempted from
invasive medical tests in orbit, like blood draws. That means he and his commander have to draw blood from their crewmates. McCool felt bad practicing
on volunteers. "I didn’t want to inflict pain," he recalls. The Navy commander and former test pilot became an astronaut in 1996. This is the first
space flight for McCool, 41, who grew up in Lubbock, Texas.
Payload Commander
Michael Anderson loves flying, both in aircraft and spacecraft, but he dislikes being launched. It’s the risk factor. "There’s always that unknown,"
he says. Anderson, 43, the son of an Air Force man, grew up on military bases. He was flying for the Air Force when NASA chose him in 1994 as one of
only a handful of black astronauts. He traveled to Russia’s Mir space station in 1998. He is now a lieutenant colonel and in charge of Columbia’s
dozens of science experiments. His home is Spokane, Wash.
Misson Specialist
Kalpana Chawla wanted to design aircraft when she emigrated to the United States from India in the 1980s. The space program was the furthest thing
from her mind. But "one thing led to another," the 41-year-old engineer said, and she was chosen as an astronaut in 1994. On her only other space
flight, in 1996, Chawla made mistakes that sent a satellite tumbling out of control, and two spacewalkers had to go out and capture it. She realizes
some may see this flight as her chance to redeem herself.
Mission Specialist
David Brown is a Navy novelty: He’s both a jet pilot and a doctor. He’s also probably the only NASA astronaut to have worked as a circus acrobat. (It
was a summer job during college.) He says what he learned about "the teamwork and the safety and the staying focused" has carried over to his space
job. He joined the Navy after his medical internship, and his current rank is captain. NASA chose him as an astronaut in 1996. This is the 46-year-old
Virginia native's first space flight.
Mission Specialist
Laurel Clark, a Navy physician who worked undersea, likens the numerous launch delays to a marathon in which the finish line keeps moving out five
miles. "You’ve got to slow back down and maintain a pace," she says. The 41-year-old Clark was a diving medical officer aboard submarines and then a
naval flight surgeon. She became an astronaut in 1996. Clark will help with Columbia’s science experiments, which should have flown almost two years
ago. Her hometown is Racine, Wis.
Isreali Payload Specialist
Ilan Ramon, a colonel in Israel’s air force, is the first Israeli to be launched into space. "It’s a very symbolic mission," he says. His mother and
grandmother survived the Auschwitz death camp, and his father was a Zionist who fought for Israel’s statehood. The astronaut also fought for his
country, in the Yom Kippur War in 1973 and the Lebanon War in 1982. Ramon, 48, was selected as an astronaut in 1997 and moved to Houston in 1998 to
train for a shuttle flight. He calls Tel Aviv home.
May they rest in peace. I pray for them and thier familys.
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TrippinDaisy
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Our continued prayers for the brave souls who today lost their lives, and for their families and loved ones. I've been watching the t.v. coverage
all day. So very hard to take. God bless and keep them all.
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Mental Floss
Senior Member
Posts: 384
Registered: 1-9-2003
Location: Williamsburg, KY
Member Is Offline
Mood: No Mood.
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Shared prayers
We share everyone's thoughts and prayers for the families of those lost. I am a school teacher and upon hearing the news this morning I went to
school and lowered flag to half mast.
I am guilt of taking these missions for granted...I promise not to any more.
God bless
Count all your blessings, remember your dreams.
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