Today marks the anniversary of the Challenger tragedy, but what most people fail to realize is that another tragedy relating to space flight and exploration looms on the horizon. Exactly five months from today on June 28th 2011, STS-135 will mark the last planned Space Shuttle flight and usher in the end of the American era of manned flight in NASA’s Shuttle Program.
Manned Space flight is iconic and serves as an inspiration to us all to dream more and reach farther; particularly students interested in mathematics and science. Irony is best used to describe the remarks of President Obama during his State of the Union address on January 25, 2011 when he challenged our countrymen to innovate and compete in “our generation's sputnik moment”, considering he effectively canceled NASA’s Constellation program in his 2010 budget. Spacecraft and landing equipment were being developed for America to revisit the Moon via the Constellation program which was set to succeed the Space Shuttle Program.
Following the completion of STS-135, Russia and China will be the only countries actively continuing manned shuttle missions.
