Tuesday July 12, 2011
Volume CXXXI Issue 4
On July 8, 2011, history was made at the John F. Kennedy Space Center. Space Shuttle Atlantis launched at 11:29 a.m. making STS-135 the final mission for the NASA space shuttle program. Although the bad weather of the previous day made the possibility of lift-off seem unlikely, it was to the surprise and extreme pleasure of both the countless media and local onlookers to watch Atlantis press its way through the sky and through the atmosphere. The magnitude of this launch was overwhelming and was of importance to more than just American citizens. Reporters and photographers from all over the world gathered for one common focus, to see the launch of all launches, there will never be another space shuttle launch. With eyes set upward, it was evident the impact NASA has had over the last thirty years and the lasting effect it would continue to have. The space shuttle program began in 1981 with mission STS-1 on April 12 with a twoman team that consisted of John W. Young (Commander) and Robert L. Crippen (Pilot). This would prove to be the first of many great milestones in the space shuttle program’s history. The crew of the final mission includes astronauts; Christopher Ferguson (Commander) of Philadelphia, Pa., Doug Hurley (Pilot) of Apalachin, NY., Sandy Magnus (Missions Specialist 1) of Belleville, Il., and last but not least, Rex Walheim (Mission Specialist 2) of San Carlos, Ca. Each of the astronauts will always be remembered as the final crew in NASA’s space shuttle program. Astronaut Charles Hobaugh of mission STS-129 is one of the few elite who can attest to having gone beyond the Earth’s atmosphere. “It’s just been an incredible part of my career. I’ve just recently retired from the Marine Corps where I spent fourteen years of my Marine Corps years in NASA” Hobaugh stated. “I would never trade it for anything, although I would never want to try it again because I probably wouldn’t get the same thing again.” Hobaugh continued on, sharing his thoughts on the Space shuttle program and what he’d miss most about it. “The thing I’ll miss most is the United States having a manned space flight capability for launching into lower orbit. Our partners, the Russians, have been fantastic and we will be working with them to build the vehicles to get us up and down at the station safely.”
Although he attended and graduated from the Naval Academy he chose to join the Marine Corps after finding the Navy had more aspiring pilots than he originally thought. Being in the Naval Academy would soon usher him into the Naval Aviation training program where he learned his piloting skills and earned hours. “Becoming an astronaut was something I always thought was an outlandish possibility, but as I went through my career I did everything to be qualified to apply. By the time I finished test pilot school I met all of the qualifications,” says Hobaugh. “One of the astronauts came to talk to us and he said, don’t ever let anybody count you out. The one thing you know for sure is if you don’t apply, you won’t get accepted; if you do apply, there’s a possibility. So let somebody else decide for you, don’t count yourself out.” Hobaugh was not hesitant in offering words of advice to anyone wanting to pursue the same field of interest, specifically in space exploration and flight. “You are perfectly postured for the future because there’s going to be a low in factory vehicles but a spike in the development of new ones. So if you’re into space and development and trying to make a rocket fly, it’s kind of a boom right now.” “So, hopefully, you’re perfectly postured to get in the development and in five, ten, fifteen years from now were going to start launching again and there’s going to be more and more opportunity. In regards to the future of space programs he simply stated, “For now, we are in a development and competition phase for the commercial sector to step up and give us a vehicle that can provide the same services just for cheaper.” The program that began thirty years ago as a two-man test flight erupted into something much larger than expected. Over the years, the space shuttle has proved to be an invaluable tool for space exploration, scientific research, spacecraft deployment, spacecraft repair, and assembly of the International Space Station. With many possibilities in the future, it is left uncertain, but filled with dreams and aspirations. In the words of Hobaugh; “The good thing is it [human spaceflight] hasn’t ended, we’re just beginning a new chapter. Now we’re going to start in on new technology and development.” ~ Hannah Langhorn Staff Reporter
RICHARD WEAKLEY/AVION
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