The space shuttle Endeavour blasted off into space from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 8, 2007. On board were seven crew members, including astronaut and teacher Barbara Morgan.
Barbara Morgan gives new meaning to the phrase “higher education.”
The first educator to visit space gave a lecture Monday night in the Student Union over her recent exploits aboard the space shuttle Endeavour.
“The thing that stuck out most to me about space was the blackness,” Morgan said. “It’s not a black you see here on Earth. It’s flat and smooth, almost like cream.”
Morgan got into contact with OSU professor Steve Marks in the early 1990s. Marks has lead multiple NASA projects during his time at OSU. He said Morgan devotes herself to her students.
“She really has a passion for students,” Marks said. “Even through all of her astronaut training, she has still maintained that passion.”
Before NASA, Morgan was a teacher and got this opportunity through the Teacher in Space Project in 1985.
A common thread in her life has been education, which was her passion since her days in college.
“I’ve always been very interested in the educational process and how people learn,” Morgan said. “So I thought, ‘What could be a better way to experience that than being in a classroom?’”
Through the Teacher in Space Project, NASA chose two teachers from each U.S. state and territory to represent their interests in encouraging children to get into the sciences.
Frank Marcum was one of the representatives for Oklahoma in the Teacher in Space Project and said Morgan impressed him from the beginning.
“She is an exceptionally bright young lady and her commitment to education is astounding,” he said. “And ironically she is very down to earth.”
For the program, Christa McAuliffe was chosen as the first to be sent into space with Morgan as her backup. The two trained side by side leading up to the launch. McAuliffe’s shuttle, the Challenger, exploded shortly after takeoff.
The Challenger was a setback for NASA and the project, but the experience didn’t stop Morgan who, 22 years later, got her chance at space flight. After being chosen for the mission, Morgan experienced yet another tragic setback.
The Columbia space shuttle disintegrated in 2003 as it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere.
After years of training, she worked on the Endeavour for the International Space Station in August 2007. After more than a week of maintenance, the shuttle disengaged and returned to Earth.
Although she has since retired from NASA, Morgan’s experience in space has been another part of the common thread in her life: education.
“Through NASA and the things that I am doing now, my goal is that teachers and students can have the same opportunities that I have been able to have,” she said.
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