I participated in two missions. On Atlantis, I was a Mission Specialist. My job was to assist the commander and pilot by opening the payload bay (and making funny faces for mission control...glad you brought your barf bag, Amelia). I also conducted an EVA (Extravehicular Activity) on the Micro G Wall with Amelia, the other Mission Specialist. I assure you that it is not easy working in an astronaut suit, and I didn't even have the gloves on. Plus, my shield was open most the time (so technically I should be dead right now). I had a blast working on the orbiter and I loved working with Nikki, Steve, and Amelia!
On the Discovery Mission, I worked as the CATO (Communications and Tracking) in Mission Control. My job was to provide mission commentary to explain air-to-ground transmissions and flight control operations to news media and the public. Basically, I just reported what and when things happened. I got the giggles (yes me) when I accidentally said "manure" instead of "maneuver." If I was a real CATO, I'm sure that would be floating around on Youtube right now.
I absolutely loved the Aviation Challenges. We had the opportunity to zipline into a lake, drop into the lake in a "dunker," and be lifted from the lake in the "lifter."
When we were not doing mission simulations and aviation challenges, we were listening to speakers, attending classes, and participating in aviation challenges. Our guest speakers included astronaut Hoot Gibson
I'm excited to incorporate the things I learned into my classroom, and I hope I my students will learn to appreciate space exploration as much as I do...time for liftoff!
The last shuttle launches on July 8th. I will be watching...will you?
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