History-Making Astronaut

Stephanie Wilson ’88 lived out nearly every child’s fantasy when she soared aloft aboard NASA’s space shuttle Discovery in...

Stephanie Wilson ’88 lived out nearly every child’s fantasy when she soared aloft aboard NASA’s space shuttle Discovery in early July, making history as only the second African-American woman to venture into space. The Pittsfield, Massachusetts, native did graduate work at the University of Texas and was selected for NASA’s astronaut class of 1996; she then worked as a capsule communicator (CAPCOM) for orbiting space crews. During her recent 13-day, five-million-mile journey, the former engineering-science concentrator served as a mission specialist and was jointly in charge of operating the shuttle’s robotic arm to transfer cargo to and from the International Space Station.

Stephanie Wilson
Courtesy of NASA

Most popular

Can Slime Molds Think?

A seemingly primitive creature’s complex ability to detect mass from a distance.

Martin Nowak Placed on Leave a Second Time

Further links to Jeffrey Epstein surface in newly released files

Harvard Faculty Debate Plan to Cap A Grades

At a lively meeting, faculty members weighed a grade inflation plan that most agreed is imperfect.

Explore More From Current Issue

A lively street scene at night with people in colorful costumes dancing joyfully.

Rabbi, Drag Queen, Film Star

Sabbath Queen, a new documentary, follows one man’s quest to make Judaism more expansive.

Purple violet flower with vibrant petals surrounded by green foliage.

Bees and Flowers Are Falling Out of Sync

Scientists are revisiting an old way of thinking about extinction.

A close-up of a beetle on the textured surface of a cycad cone and cycad cones seen in infrared silhouette.

Research in Brief

Cutting-edge discoveries, distilled