Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut, William Oefelein!

William Oefelein, born March 29, 1965 in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, went into space once aboard Discovery (STS-116) as pilot to the International Space Station in December 2006. 

The following fellow astronaut Lisa Nowak drove from Houston to Orlando and attacked Oefelein's girlfriend at the time Colleen Shipman.  Both Nowak and Oefelein were dismissed from the astronaut program. 

Oefelein and Shipman married in 2010 and now reside in Alaska.

Discovery (STS-121) launched 2006

STS-121 crew (L-R):  Stephanie Wilson, Michael Fossum, Steven Lindsey, Piers Sellers, Mark Kelly, Thomas Reiter, Lisa Nowak.

Mission patch

Space shuttle Discovery (STS-121), launched July 4, 2006, carried equipment and supplies to the International Space Station as well as a German astronaut from the European Space Agency.  Its crew consisted of Commander Steven Lindsey, Pilot Mark Kelly, Michael Fossum, Lisa Nowak, Stephanie Wilson, Piers Sellers and Thomas Reiter (ESA).

Part of the mission was to test new safety and repair techniques put in place by NASA following the Columbia disaster.  Three EVAs were conducted during the mission by Mike Fossum, Mark Kelly and Piers Sellers.

The crew returned to Earth July 17.

Celebrating Black History Month - Stephanie Wilson, African-American astronaut

Stephanie Wilson is the second black female astronaut to travel into space, after Mae Jemison, and she is a veteran of three space shuttle flights.  She has spent more time in space than any other black astronaut, male or female. 

Born September 27, 1966 in Boston, Massachusetts, she began her astronaut training in August 1996 and first went into space on Discovery (STS-121) as mission specialist in July 2006.  She and fellow astronaut Lisa Nowak operated the robotic arm on the International Space Station during the mission.

Her second flight was on Discovery (STS-120) October-November 2007.  She operated the robotic arm again.

Her third and latest (hopefully not the last) mission was on back on Discovery (STS-131) in April 2010 as mission specialist.  She participated in interviews while on board as well as operating the robotic arm.