Astronaut and Astronaut Trainer headed for BradfordFasten your seat belts, as Bradford prepares to welcome an astronaut and a trainer who prepares astronauts for their amazing journey to outer space. They also happen to be husband and wife.
The duo is expected to land in Bradford during the first week of July and is part of Space Connections summer events designed to get the young people of Bradford motivated and inspired in the STEM subjects, raising aspirations and showing that the sky can be the limit for future careers.
Kenneth T. Ham (Commander, USN) NASA Astronaut and Michelle Ham (Astronaut Trainer) will be in Bradford during the first week of July. Ken is no stranger to Bradford as he led the very first crew of NASA astronauts to land in Bradford, back in September 2008.
Selected by NASA in June 1998, he reported for training in August 1998. STS-124 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, and docked with the International Space Station on June 2. The STS-124 mission was completed in 218 orbits, traveling 5,735.643 miles in 13 days, 18 hours, 13 minutes and 7 seconds.
The event has been organised by Bradford-based Space Connections in conjunction with ISSET - the International Space School Educational Trust and supported by Yorkshire Forward.
NASA Astronauts crew coming to Bradford
Following their space mission to the International Space Station in June, Astronaut Mission Commander Lee Archambault and his crew of space shuttle STS-119 will visit the United Kingdom in July 2009.
Their visit is part of Space Connections wider summer projects to get as many school children as possible motivated and inspired in Science, Mathematics, Engineering and Technology (STEM).
A series of events have been planned which will launch a variety of programmes designed to inspire, engage and sustain a lifelong passion for science and space related education and illustrate how a career in space can be achieved.
The whole purpose of this campaign is to increase the awareness of these subjects which are typically under subscribed by the region's school children.
The Crew
Air Force Col. Lee Archambault was the commander of STS-119 on the 28th shuttle mission to the space station. Archambault served as the pilot of STS-117 in 2007 and has logged more than 14 days in space. Navy Cmdr. Tony Antonelli served as the pilot for the mission. Selected as an astronaut candidate in 2004, this was Joseph Acaba's first spaceflight, Acaba has five years of teaching experience, one at Melbourne High School in Florida and four years as a maths and science teacher at Dunnellon Middle School in Florida. This will be the second trip to space for Steve Swanson, Swanson conducted two spacewalks on this mission, acquiring more than 13 hours of extravehicular activity time. John Phillips returned to space with more prior spaceflight experience than the rest of his crewmates combined.
The event has been organised by Bradford-based Space Connections in conjunction with ISSET - the International Space School Educational Trust and supported by Yorkshire Forward.