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NASA relaunches teacher-in-space program BY JEFF FOUST SPACEFLIGHT NOW Posted: April 12, 2002 NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe announced Friday that the space agency was restarting efforts to send educators into space, starting with the runner-up to Christa McAuliffe in the original Teacher in Space competition. He made the announcement Friday afternoon during a speech at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. The address was billed as a major policy address, but the announcement about flying teachers on the shuttle emerged as the major news from the hour-long speech. O'Keefe said that Barbara Morgan, a former Idaho elementary school teacher who has trained to be a NASA astronaut, will fly on a shuttle mission after the "core complete" portion of the International Space Station's assembly phase is completed in 2004. An exact date for the flight was not announced. Morgan had been selected in 1985 as the backup to Christa McAuliffe, the New Hampshire teacher selected by NASA to fly on the shuttle as part of the agency's new Teacher in Space program. However, the program was canceled after the Challenger was lost in a January 1986 accident, claiming the lives of McAuliffe and the other six members of the crew. In 1998, when NASA announced that it would fly then-Senator John Glenn on a shuttle mission later that year, the agency also said that Morgan would be selected to become a full-time member of the astronaut corps as a payload specialist, provided she passed the training process. She completed astronaut training and is currently a member of the astronaut corps, but without a flight assignment. "For the past 16 years, Barbara has worked with NASA and countless science organizations, keeping alive Christa McAuliffe's inspiration. She is uniquely qualified to take our students on a journey of education that only NASA could make possible," O'Keefe said. "The time has come for NASA to complete the mission to send an educator to space to inspire and teach our young people." O'Keefe said that Morgan will be the first person to fly under a new Educator in Space program that the agency is developing to allow additional teachers to fly on future missions. He said NASA is working in cooperation with the Department of Education to develop a national recruitment program for future participants. Education emerged as one of three major tenets of NASA's new mission, as outlined by O'Keefe during his talk. The full mission as described by O'Keefe was the following:
That mission statement had its roots in a separate haiku-like vision statement, which O'Keefe also announced in the speech:
O'Keefe said the space agency had a number of major roles it can play, from doing its share to enhance national security to searching for evidence for life beyond the Earth. "I believe we are at the crossroads of NASA's history," he said, with an opportunity to "reinvigorate" the space agency. Other than the release of the agency's new vision and mission statements, O'Keefe's talk provided few new details on NASA's policy. Many of the points he made in his speech he had made in earlier addresses, such as a talk last month before a Washington aerospace group where he said the agency's two major current technical challenges were developing new propulsion technologies and new ways to protect humans from the radiation exposure during long-duration spaceflight. O'Keefe reiterated previous statements where he refused to choose a particular destination for the space agency, like the Moon or Mars. "NASA's missions will be driven by the science, not a particular destination," he said. He also added that future missions will be "fiscally responsible", a key point by O'Keefe, who was previously the deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. In that same vein, he said that any proposals to enhance the International Space Station with new habitation modules or crew return vehicles were "flights of fancy" until the core complete portions of the station assembly process were completed. However, he said that the agency would not shy away from challenges and "stretch goals" that have no guarantee of success. "If everything moved along without a hitch," he said, "I'd be suspicious that we were not doing enough."
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Apollo 11 special patch Special collectors' patch marking the 35th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing is now available.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Inside Apollo mission control
An insider's view of how Apollo flight controllers operated and just what they faced when events were crucial.U.S. The ultimate Apollo 11 DVD This exceptional chronicle of the historic Apollo 11 lunar landing mission features new digital transfers of film and television coverage unmatched by any other.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Next ISS crew
Own a little piece of history with this official patch for the International Space Station's Expedition 11 crew. We'll ship yours today!U.S. Apollo 12 tribute DVD set ![]() New! Featuring the jovial crew of Pete Conrad, Dick Gordon and Alan Bean, the Apollo 12 mission was struck by lightning shortly after liftoff but proceeded on the second successful exploration voyage to the lunar surface. This three-disc DVD brings the mission to life with extraordinary detail. U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Fallen Heroes special patch This special 12-inch embroidered patch commemorates the U.S. astronauts who made the ultimate sacrifice, honoring the crews of Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Women in Space Women of Space: Cool Careers on the Final Frontier is for girls, young women, and anyone else interested in learning about exciting careers in space exploration. Includes CD-ROM.U.S. - U.K. - E.U. - Worldwide Mars rover poster This new poster features some of the best pictures from NASA's amazing Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity.U.S. The Unbroken Chain Guenter Wendt's autobiography, The Unbroken Chain, is a ground-shaking, fumes in your nostrils account of the glory days of manned spaceflight.Expedition 20 The official embroidered patch for the International Space Station Expedition 20 crew is now available from our stores.Current Shuttle Mission Patch The official embroidered patch for shuttle Atlantis' flight to deliver critical spare equipment to the space station.![]() Ares Patch The Ares Project will develop two new rockets to launch astronauts back to the Moon under NASA's Vision for Exploration. The Ares 1 will employ a single space shuttle solid rocket booster to loft the Orion crew capsule. The gigantic Ares 5 will haul the equipment and cargo needed for such lunar voyages. This is the Ares emblem.One Giant Leap
Hosted by Corbin Bernsen, this award winning documentary marks the 50th anniversary of the U.S. space agency and features exclusive interviews with veteran astronauts.Expedition 21 The official embroidered patch for the International Space Station Expedition 21 crew is now available from our stores.Hubble Posters Stunning posters featuring images from the Hubble Space Telescope and world-renowned astrophotographer David Malin are now available from the Astronomy Now Store.Get e-mail updates Sign up for our NewsAlert service and have the latest news in astronomy and space e-mailed direct to your desktop (privacy note: your e-mail address will not be used for any other purpose). |
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