Educator-astronaut talks to ‘younger of us at heart’ for on-line talk Tuesday

NASA astronaut Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, STS-131 mission specialist, poses for a photograph end to a window within the Kibo laboratory of the World Space Space, on April 14, 2020.

(Image: © NASA)

Youngsters or “younger of us at heart” can costume up for Halloween or celebrate the tumble season alongside with astronaut Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, who will discuss region training in an on-line talk Tuesday (Oct. 27).

Metcalf-Lindenburger will discuss her educator-astronaut background and her 15-day region shuttle mission in 2010 as fragment of “The Digital Astronaut” sequence of talks, and it’s seemingly you’ll maybe maybe also comprise tickets right here.

The STS-131 astronaut has a favorable background for NASA spaceflyers, in that she is regarded as one of a handful of educator astronauts chosen for coaching and spaceflight. Metcalf-Lindenburger, an alumnus of Space Camp as a baby, taught Earth science and astronomy on the high college stage sooner than NASA chosen her as an astronaut in 2004.

Related: ‘The Digital Astronaut’ launches with live region explorer tournament sequence 

It became once student questions about region that led her to NASA’s internet region, Metcalf-Lindenburger knowledgeable Space.com. “That launched my have occupation, because I seen they had been going to be hiring teachers,” she said.

Metcalf-Lindenburger arrived at an company busily redesigning the shuttle and its exterior tank for safety after falling foam breached the hull of the region shuttle Columbia, killing seven astronauts for the period of reentry the yr sooner than she became once chosen. She additionally remembered, as a baby, seeing the deadly explosion of region shuttle Challenger in 1986, with educator-astronaut Christa McAuliffe on board.

“After I became once employed, I felt this became once a chance to sustain the legacy of Christa and the remainder of the Challenger crew alive — and we had additionally merely lost Columbia,” Metcalf-Lindenburger said. Rebuilding the program, she added, became once “a vital predicament” for NASA, but one that she felt became once worth pursuing due to the shuttle’s contributions to fields treasure research and training.

Metcalf-Lindenburger became once regarded as one of three mission specialist-educator astronauts NASA chosen in 2004, the quite quite a bit of two being Joe Acaba (who has now flown thrice in region) and Ricky Arnold (a now two-time spaceflyer). 

The Educator Astronaut selection program ran once, for the period of the 2003 astronaut recruitment that started weeks sooner than Columbia’s loss of life. It became once a successor to the 1984 Teacher in Space program that had chosen McAuliffe and Barbara Morgan as astronauts, sooner than being cancelled in 1990; Morgan finally retrained as a mission specialist and flew on STS-118 in August 2007.

Metcalf-Lindenburger recalled watching STS-118 birth from the air, in regarded as one of the NASA climate planes searching out for the safety of region shuttle Endeavour within the hours sooner than liftoff. “That became once barely surreal, since the shuttle regarded treasure honest a minute toy because it became once lifting off. That became once my first [launch], and then I became once ready to search around for others after that.”

While all astronauts are educated in public engagement and working with colleges, Metcalf-Lindenburger said her skillset within the college room became once one thing she indubitably enjoyed for the period of the habitual astronaut talks in classrooms. Like assorted astronauts, she became once tasked with speaking with college students from kindergarten to school and getting college students attracted to spaceflight alongside with science, technology, art, engineering and math (STEAM) matters which would per chance maybe presumably be connected to region.

“I treasure the lifeless necessary college and center college [classrooms] because that is when college students open to take into legend what they wish to be when they develop up. The fantastic thing about this generation is it’s seemingly you’ll maybe maybe also alternate your job just a few times; it’s barely overall … there are reasonably hundreds of choices and the college students are accountable for reasonably hundreds of the decisions,” Metcalf-Lindenburger said.

“I constantly indubitably emphasized the ‘work arduous’ component,” she added. “There were some very gifted astronauts, and there are additionally astronauts who are maybe treasure me, who work arduous, and that arduous work has paid off. That is the grit that you need. I needed to aid them [students] heed one thing you need to attain, it will require your engagement, your effort and your arduous work. I additionally tried to emphasise you need to possess a community and mentorship. I for rush have in mentors, and in mates.”

Metcalf-Lindenburger additionally enjoyed the trip of studying from the skillsets of varied astronauts. She mild has fond memories of being surrounded by assorted individuals of the 2004 class, studying for the inevitable skills exams astronaut candidates pick on to pass to qualify for flight opportunities. Frail Navy SEAL Randy Bresnik became once a a lot asset in keeping the neighborhood mute, she recalled. “I treasure the program, because it indubitably became once now not on the topic of you. It became once about the crew and making it better,” she added.

Related: What it’s decide to develop to be a NASA astronaut: 10 shocking facts

STS-131 became once a advanced mission that launched an gargantuan cargo pod, identified because the multipurpose logistics module, filled with provides and tools to aid World Space Space astronauts. One day of three spacewalks that Metcalf-Lindenburger helped toughen, the crew eliminated and replaced an ammonia tank assembly. The spacewalks had been advanced and unhealthy due to the toxicity of ammonia, however the crew became once willing through in depth coaching — and they also persevered and executed every little thing successfully.

Metcalf-Lindenburger said she cherished spaceflight, and recalled regarded as one of her video calls alongside with her then three-yr-feeble daughter. “She wished to construct up a detect at to float herself,” Metcalf-Lindenburger said. “She jumped into the air and my mother-in-legislation and husband lifted her up, so she became once floating treasure me.”

Your complete crew became once alive to to search around for his or her families on landing day, she recalled, and then came the exiguous disappointment of realizing they’d pick on to wait a day; the climate interfered with the safety stipulations NASA mandated for returning to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “On the different hand it became once so stress-free to possess that extra day [in space],” she said. “We didn’t possess one thing scheduled, and we took so many images out the window and indubitably enjoyed each assorted’s company.”

Metcalf-Lindenburger’s ground toughen for assorted missions became once in depth, alongside side supporting instrument checks for region position missions and acting as a “Cape Crusader” to construct up the last three region shuttle crews willing for flight in 2011. She became once in crew quarters, interior differ of STS-135, within the minutes sooner than liftoff on July 8, 2011 and asked the crew for a favorable prefer in between her safety responsibilities.

“I asked, ‘If I merely speed out indubitably immediate, attain you have it would per chance maybe maybe also be k if I watched the last one float?” They said, ‘Sure, Dottie, I’ve it’s seemingly you’ll maybe be ready to attain merely that.” So as that’s what I did. I ran birth air, but there became once honest a minute little bit of a cloud deck and I didn’t accumulate to search around for the shuttle slither. But I did indubitably feel it. I needed to snatch they had been safe and off. I’ll constantly be acutely conscious that.”

Be conscious Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace. Be conscious us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Fb.