Author: Jason Rhian

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CAPE CANAVERAL – Most people struggle to find a new path when their primary career ends unexpectedly. Some say that it’s hard to get ahead in this world. Then there are those that prove it is possible to have a vibrant second career and that it is possible to make it – in spades. Leland Melvin is one of those people.

Back in 1986 it seemed he would be a wide receiver for the NFL. Then an injury sidelined him when he was training with the Detroit Lions. He tried again the following spring with the Dallas Cowboys – but the same injury resurfaced and dashed his NFL hopes. Few manage to pull off a second high-caliber career after such a setback. But Melvin did just that – he went on to join one of America’s most elite clubs – he became an astronaut.

He went on to fly on two space shuttle missions, STS-122 and STS-129, both onboard Atlantis, both to the International Space Station (ISS).

He didn’t start out with the plan to be an astronaut however; in fact he really didn’t think that he would work for the space agency. A job fair, of all things, helped him become an engineer at NASA’s Langley Research Center.

“I really didn’t think I wanted to be with NASA,” Melvin said during an interview at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center just before the shuttle Discovery launched on its final mission. “This one lady would have none of it. I helped her with her bags and she helped me with my career.”

Melvin got accepted as an astronaut in 1998. However, he never drifted far from his roots – and those were firmly planted in education. After he completed his missions to space, his mind and his path went back to education. In October of 2010 he was selected as NASA’s Associate Administrator for Education.

Since selected he has worked to make NASA’s education elements a more hands-on affair. Melvin has become a tireless advocate of NASA’s Summer of Innovation, Explorer Schools as well as the numerous other education programs that the space agency supports. One of his responsibilities is to raise public awareness about how much NASA does to support education. It was in that capacity that he was at Kennedy Space Center on launch day.

For some, coming down to a shuttle launch is a perk of the job; Melvin seemed far more interested with getting the word out about NASA’s educational outreach efforts, jumping from one interview to the next.

“People really don’t realize how much of a tremendous investment that NASA truly is,” said Melvin. “Basically, for every dollar they put in – they get eighteen dollars in return. Out of every tax dollar, I think it boils down to one-seventh of one cent goes to NASA – for that the public gets the astronaut corps, the shuttle, space station, all the probes to the planets, on and on…it’s really an incredible deal.”

Melvin’s life has been shaped by education, from his parents, to his experiences in college and now with NASA. Sometimes, Melvin takes a second from the frenetic pace of his job and looks back.

“Education has always been important to me, I got that from my parents,” said Melvin. Both of his parents were teachers, a fact he is reminded about whenever he visits his hometown of Lynchburg, Virginia. “People still come up to me and thank me for what my father did for them.”

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CAPE CANAVERAL – Arriving in their trademark T-38 Talon jets, the crew that will fly the last mission of the space shuttle Discovery arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The astronauts landed at the Shuttle Landing Facility (SLF) at 3:45 p.m. EDT and took a few moments to speak to members of the media and pose for pictures before heading off to prepare for their 11-day mission.

Discovery is currently slated to begin its mission to the International Space Station (ISS) with liftoff taking place at 4:50 p.m. EDT Thursday, Feb. 24. The STS-133 mission is Discovery’s final scheduled flight. However, STS-132, which took place this past May, was shuttle Atlantis’ final scheduled flight – now that orbiter is scheduled to close out the shuttle program when it completes mission STS-135, which is scheduled to take place late this summer.

The crew will deliver the Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) to the space station. The PMM was modified from the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) Leonardo – which was essentially a cargo container. Now, Leonardo will be a permanent fixture on the orbiting outpost providing additional storage for the station’s crew.

On the way to orbit, the PMM will carry, among other things, the first human-like robot ever flown in space, Robonaut 2 (R2). R2 will stay onboard the station and will be used to test the viability of similar robots in assisting astronauts on future long-duration missions. One of the things that the station can always use – is more spare parts. STS-133 will deliver various parts and the Express Logistics Carrier 4, a platform that holds large equipment.

The crew consists of Commander Steve Lindsey, Pilot Eric Boe and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew, Steve Bowen, Michael Barratt and Nicole Stott. Bowen is a last minute addition to the crew. He replaces Tim Kopra who broke his hip in a bicycle accident.

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HOUSTON — Whether or not Mark Kelly would command the final scheduled flight of the space shuttle Endeavour, STS-134, had been left undecided in the wake of the shootings in Tucson, Arizona. It was announced today that Kelly would remain the commander of the mission, if all goes well he will launch with the remainder of his crew on Apr. 19.

Kelly’s wife, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was severely injured when she was shot during an event held outdoors in Tucson, Arizona. As such, Kelly’s time has been spent at his wife’s side as she recuperates.

“I am looking forward to rejoining my STS-134 crew members and finishing our training for the mission,” Kelly said. “We have been preparing for more than 18 months, and we will be ready to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) to the International Space Station and complete the other objectives of the flight. I appreciate the confidence that my NASA management has in me and the rest of my space shuttle crew.”

Kelly was forced to take leave to be at his wife’s side. He asked that a backup commander be chosen. NASA selected four-time shuttle veteran Rick Sturckow, to take Kelly’s place in case he could not make the flight.

At a press conference on Friday, Kelly said his decision to return “has everything to do with what is right for NASA first and then me and my family.”

He said all of his family – including his daughters and Giffords’ parents – support his decision to fly the mission, and that when he was considering not commanding STS-134, they all told him he needed to reconsider.

The main reason he has decided to return to training is the incredible recovery of Giffords, which has surprised everyone, including her doctors. Kelly would not talk about Giffords’ condition, or give any information if Giffords has spoken directly to Kelly about the decision to fly the mission, but he did say that Giffords should be able to come to Kennedy Space Center for the launch in April.

“Absolutely. I have every intention that she’ll be there for the launch,” he said in response to a question of if she would be able to attend. “I’ve already talked to her doctors about it. There really shouldn’t be any reason why she can’t go to the launch.”

Although Kelly was willing to return as commander, Peggy Whitson, chief of the Astronaut Office, said they didn’t take his decision lightly. “We researched this and really looked into Gabby’s condition and looked at the prognosis,” as well as making sure Kelly wouldn’t change his mind at the last minute. They put Kelly through a trial run this week of what his activities would be during training and if he could hand the work flow.

Asked about those who might criticize his decision, Kelly said those people might not understand the entire situation.

“They don’t know her very well, so they don’t know what she would want,” he said. “She is a big supporter of my career, a big supporter of NASA. She really values the mission of NASA. What we do and what the nation gets from that are very high on her list of things she really treasures about this country. So I think they don’t understand that, and they also don’t understand her condition or the support system that I have in place. I think if they had more details about those things, you’d probably have less people being critical. But I think in any decision there’s a lot of interest in, you’re going to have people on both sides.”

As to whether NASA will be criticized for allowing Kelly to return when he has been absent from training for several weeks, Brent Jett, chief Flight Crew Operations Directorate said, “When Mark’s situation got to the point where he was ready to commit to fly, our job was to evaluate what was best for the mission, it is that simple. With all the training and time he has put in, we had to know if he was ready. But we had to take certain steps to make sure he was ready. And we feel we’ve done that. And we’re really happy that he is back as commander of STS-134.”

Kelly said the outpouring of support he has received is a bit humbling. “I’m very grateful for it,” he said. “It is nice to see that people care about who she is and what she represents. The fact that something so horrible where 6 people lost their lives, it is really a sad situation. But I’m hopeful that something positive can come from it.”

STS-134 is currently scheduled to be the final flight of the space shuttle Endeavour, the youngest orbiter in the fleet. It will carry the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer – 2 (AMS-02) science experiment, the ExPRESS Logistics Carrier 3 as well as equipment that will test out the risk mitigation equipment for the Orion spacecraft.