Astronauts Misbehaving

Stories

12 Stories

October 2008
- Space Tourist Video Gamer Blasts Off
  
  Reuters | Oct 12, 08 4:44 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - US video game magnate Richard Garriott blasted off into space today aboard a Russian rocket—and all it cost him was $35 million. The "space tourist" was cheered on by his father, a one-time NASA astronaut, Reuters reports. "I can see he is really enjoying it like a little kid in a candy shop," said Garriott's girlfriend. The craft is already in orbit and will dock with the International Space Station in two days. More »
February 2008
- Astronauts Often a Bit Woozy
  
  ABC News | Feb 15, 08 12:52 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - We all know about carsickness and seasickness—but spacesickness? NASA is cagey about its vomiting astronauts, but about half of the 500 who’ve been to the final frontier suffer from “space adaptation syndrome,” reports Ned Potter for ABC News. So it comes as no surprise to Potter that when a German aboard the orbiting shuttle Atlantis was replaced on a recent spacewalk, it was for an undisclosed “medical issue.” More »
November 2007
- Judge Tosses Evidence in Nowak Case
  
  CNN | Nov 3, 07 5:47 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The case against Lisa Nowak, the former astronaut accused of stalking and pepper spraying a rival in a fit of jealousy, took a hit yesterday when a Florida judge threw out evidence recovered from her car and recorded statements she made to the police. The judge ruled that Nowak, facing charges of attempted kidnapping, had not fully understood and waived her Miranda rights, CNN reports. More »
September 2007
- Aldrin Likes Nowak's Grit, Bladder Control
  
  Associated Press | Sep 10, 07 7:31 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Second man on the moon Buzz Aldrin salutes lovesick astronaut Lisa Nowak's gritty restroom-less cross-country drive, telling Time: "I think Nowak should be admired for traveling across the country at night and not getting out of her car to put in gas or go to the restroom," he says. More »
August 2007
- Nowak to Argue Temporary Insanity
  
  Orlando Sentinel | Aug 28, 07 4:01 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Former astronaut Lisa Nowak will plead temporary insanity if she goes to trial on kidnapping and assault charges next month. A notice her lawyer filed today says she was experiencing a major depressive disorder when she attacked her ex-lover's girlfriend at the Orlando airport in February, the Sentinel reports. More »
- Ex-Astronaut Faces Romantic Rival in Court
  
  Orlando Sentinel | Aug 24, 07 4:37 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The Air Force captain who was allegedly stalked and attacked by Lisa Nowak testified today she is still afraid of the ex-astronaut. At a pretrial hearing in Orlando, Colleen Shipman told the court she would feel more comfortable if Nowak continues wearing an ankle monitor that tracks her location, the Sentinel reports, in case Nowak tries to come near her. More »
July 2007
- The Astronaut%u2019s Drinking Rules
  
  New York Times | Jul 29, 07
  
  There%u2019s a long tradition of two-fisted hard living among military pilots. Tom Wolfe wrote in %u201CThe Right Stuff%u201D about Chuck Yeager having a few drinks at the Muroc hangout, Pancho%u2019s, two nights before breaking the sound barrier and going riding horses with his wife and having an accident that broke two ribs. %u201CYeager didn%u2019t go to Pancho%u2019s and knock back a few because two days later the big test was coming up,%u201D Mr. Wolfe wrote. %u201CNor did he knock back a few because it was the weekend. No, he knocked back a few because night had come and he was a pilot...
- NASA Admits Sabotage, Drunk Astronauts
  
  CNN | Jul 27, 07 3:20 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - NASA promised immediate action today on embarrassing reports of an intentionally damaged computer and inebriated astronauts. An administrator said an internal safety review, staff briefing on new policy, and official 12-hour pre-flight ban on alcohol would follow an independent panel’s finding of “heavy” alcohol use by astronauts before flights. More »
- Astronauts Drunk on the Job: Panel
  
  Aviation Week | Jul 26, 07 5:53 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - NASA astronauts were permitted to fly while intoxicated on at least two occasions, an independent review has found. A aerospace trade journal published the findings on its website, revealing that astronauts engaged in "heavy use of alcohol" within the prohibited 12-hour "bottle to throttle" time before launch. More »
June 2007
- Lawyer Blasts 'Astronaut Diaper' Report
  
  Houston Chronicle | Jun 29, 07 5:50 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The most attention-getting detail to emerge from the astronaut love triangle story is also the "biggest lie," Lisa Nowak's lawyer said today. The ex-astronaut did not drive from Houston to Orlando wearing a diaper, and that information, which originally appeared in the police report about the incident that ended Nowak's road trip, was "an absolute fabrication," Donald Lykkebak said. More »
May 2007
- Final Frontier Tests Terra Firma Ethics
  
  CNN | May 1, 07 7:49 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - As NASA plans a three-year manned mission to Mars during the next three decades, Oregon Trail ethics are being updated. What do you do with bodies of pioneers who don't make it? A new document on crew health from the space agency deals with death and interment where no man has gone before. More »
March 2007
- NASA Dumps Deranged Astronaut
  
  Washington Post | Mar 8, 07 1:16 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Love-lorn Lisa Nowak made history again Wednesday, when she became the first astronaut ever to get a pink slip from NASA. The space agency remanded her to the U.S. Navy, for whom she was officially on assignment at NASA. More »