AKAKA MEETS HAWAII BORN SPACE SHUTTLE CREW MEMBER

U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka met today with the crew of NASA’s space shuttle Atlantis who successfully repaired the Hubble Telescope on mission STS-125 in May.

Akaka, McArthur, and the rest of the crew of Shuttle Atlantis (Photo credit: Jesse Broder Van Dyke)

The crew includes Honolulu-born and Saint Francis High School graduate Dr. Megan McArthur, who was Mission Specialist.

McArthur told Akaka that the feeling of weightlessness was incredible.  She said her crewmates would attempt to take photos of her in front of the window as they passed over the Hawaiian Islands, but it was difficult because the shuttle travels at about 17,500 mph.

They had to use the flight plan to time the picture, because if they waited until Kauai came into view it would be too late.  Other crew members said seeing Hawaii in the middle of the Pacific was incredible, especially during their spacewalk.

(Posted by Wendy Osher, Information provided by: the office of U.S. Senator Daniel K. Akaka)