RIP: Thomas Stafford, Apollo 10 Astronaut

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): The joint U.S.-USSR crew for the Apollo Soyuz Test Project. Astronaut Thomas P. Stafford (standing on left), commander of the American crew; Cosmonaut Aleksey A. Leonov (standing on right), commander of the Soviet crew; Astronaut Donald K. Slayton (seated on left), docking module pilot of the American crew; Astronaut Vance D. Brand (seated in center), command module pilot of the American crew; and Cosmonaut Valeriy N. Kubasov (seated on right), engineer on the Soviet crew. (NASA)

As we plan our return to the Moon, we cannot forget the Apollo astronauts who showed us the way last century. One of those astronauts, Thomas Stafford, died today at the age of 93.

Among his many achievements, including his Apollo 10 mission that prepared the way for the first Moon landing by Apollo 11, he may be most remembered for his 1975 space encounter with the U.S.S.R. cosmonauts.

The Apollo-Soyuz Test Project was the first international mission in space. It involved an Apollo spacecraft (crew of three) connecting with a Soyuz spacecraft (crew of two) in Earth orbit. The two days of joint activities created a precedent that was later followed by the International Space Station (ISS).

We were in the middle of the Cold War in 1975, so any cooperation with the U.S.S.R. was pretty amazing. It is just as surprising to witness SpaceX bringing cosmonauts to the ISS while the U.S. maintains severe sanctions on Russia.

Thomas Stafford died knowing that his early efforts to blaze a path to the Moon and cooperate with the Russians were still going strong today. That must have provided him with a little bit of peace in his final days.

You can watch a NASA video on Mr. Stafford’s accomplishments here.

You can also read more on Mr. Stafford’s life and career at these sites:

Rest in peace.

RIP: Ken Mattingly, Apollo Astronaut

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Astronaut Thomas Kenneth Mattingly II. (NASA)

Last month we lost another astronaut who almost flew on the Apollo 13 mission and later flew on the Apollo 16 mission. Thomas Kenneth Mattingly II died on late last month at the age of 87 in Arlington, Virginia.

In addition to his work on the Apollo missions, he also flew on two space shuttle missions.

Mr. Mattingly is best remembered for his efforts to bring the Apollo 13 mission safely back to Earth after his lost his seat in that very mission when he was exposed to rubella. All of this was well documented in the 1995 Ron Howard film Apollo 13.

You can read Mr. Mattingly’s own story about his past at this NASA oral history site.

You can also read more on Mr. Mattingly’s life and career at these sites:

Rest in peace.

RIP: Frank Borman, Apollo Astronaut

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Former NASA astronaut Col. (ret.) Frank Borman. (NASA)

Earlier this week, former astronaut Frank Borman, age 95, passed away at his home in Billings, Montana. He was most famous for his role as Commander of the 1968 Apollo 8 Mission, which was the first manned mission to circle the Moon.

He was NASA’s oldest living astronaut.

Here is one of Mr. Borman’s observations that was never answered years ago, nor can it be answered today:

When you’re finally up on the moon, looking back at the earth, all these differences and nationalistic traits are pretty well going to blend and you’re going to get a concept that maybe this is really one world and why the hell can’t we learn to live together like decent people?

You can read more on Mr. Borman’s life and career at these sites:

Rest in peace.

RIP: Marilyn Lovell, Wife of Apollo 13 Commander

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Astronaut James Lovell and Marilyn Lovell at a 1969 news conference. (Paul Shane/AP)

Marilyn Lovell died on August 27th in Lake Forest, Illinois at the age of 93. She is the wife of astronaut James A. Lovell Jr., who commanded the troubled Apollo 13 mission. You can read her full obituary at the Washington Post site.

I just wanted to highlight one interesting piece from the obituary. It relates to the Lovell’s viewing the 1969 film Marooned shortly before the 1970 Apollo 13 crisis. The film, starring Gregory Peck and Gene Hackman, was a fictional account of three astronauts in a capsule facing possible destruction after a rocket failure. A short time later her husband would be one of the three astronauts facing a real crisis in a crippled capsule, while she worried below.

They say life is stranger than fiction. Luckily, Apollo 13 ended better for the crew. You way want to check out this trailer for Marooned and even rent it one of these days.

As for Marilyn Lovell, she led an amazing life here on Earth with her husband (now 95) and large family.

Rest in peace.

A Day in Astronomy: Space Shuttle Columbia Disaster

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Space Shuttle Columbia Memorial. (NASA)

On this day in 2003, the STS-107 mission aboard NASA’s oldest space shuttle Columbia came to a horrible end when the shuttle disintegrated upon reentry. That day we lost crew members David M. Brown, Rick D. Husband, Laurel B. Clark, Kalpana Chawla, Michael P. Anderson, William C. “Willie” McCool, and Ilan Ramon. It was just 17 years after losing the crew on the space shuttle Challenger.

At the memorial service for the astronauts, President George W. Bush stated:

This cause of exploration and discovery is not an option we choose; it is a desire written in the human heart. We are that part of creation which seeks to understand all creation. We find the best among us, send them forth into unmapped darkness, and pray they will return. They go in peace for all mankind, and all mankind is in their debt. Yet, some explorers do not return. And the loss settles unfairly on a few.

You can learn more about the STS-107 mission here.

Image (Credit): STS-107 crew members David M. Brown, left, Rick D. Husband, Laurel B. Clark, Kalpana Chawla, Michael P. Anderson, William C. “Willie” McCool, and Ilan Ramon. (NASA)