STS-93: Crew Interview - Cady Coleman

Abstract

Live footage of a preflight interview with Mission Specialist Catherine G. Coleman is presented. The interview addresses many different questions including why Coleman wanted to be an astronaut, why she wanted to become a chemist, and how this historic flight (first female Commander of a mission) will influence little girls. Other interesting information that this one-on-one interview discusses is the deployment of the Chandra satellite, why people care about x ray energy, whether or not Chandra will compliment the other X Ray Observatories currently in operation, and her responsibilities during the major events of this mission. Coleman mentions the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) rocket that will deploy Chandra, and the design configuration of Chandra that will allow for the transfer of information. The Southwest Research Ultraviolet Imaging System (SWUIS) Telescope on board Columbia, the Plant Growth Investigation in Microgravity (PGIM) experiment, and the two observatories presently in orbit (Gamma Ray Observatory, and Hubble Space Telescope) are also discussed.