A Tainted Idol

For the first time in NASA’s history, an active astronaut has run into legal troubles. Lisa Marie Nowak was caught by Orlando Police in an attempt to “confront” a romantic rival (an air force captain) with a four inch blade, a rubber hose, and a BB gun. Nowak, who is a Captain in the US Navy (thats one rank away from admiral), was arrested after failing to assault her rival in an airport parking lot. She followed her rival’s plane from Houston to Orlando by car, not even stopping for bathroom breaks, as she wore a diaper the entire way. I guess she became accustomed to those diapers in space. Why not give them a try in gravity?

Evidently, Nowak and the other woman are “active participants” in a love triangle with a fellow astronaut. The ramifications are already being felt by Nowak, as NASA has grounded her from flight status and put her on thirty day leave. She was allowed to post bail of around $25K this afternoon under the condition that she wear a GPS tracking device around her ankle. It maybe a bit rash, but one of the charges included attempted murder. There is no word yet on the other participants. NASA has yet to officially comment on the story, but chances are their reputation has taken a big hit.

One would wonder how a “crazed” individual like this even gained entrance into the astronaut program in the first place. Potential astronauts are put through rigorous psychological monitoring and testing in order to get into the program, much less the other rigors it takes to enter space. Nowak has been an astronaut since 1996 and has countless degrees from the US Naval Academy, i.e. she is not stupid. She even took part in STS-121 last summer when the space shuttle Discovery spent a few weeks at the International Space Station. Astronauts are human like the rest of us, but their aura in our society is comparable to a god; they are idolized the world around.

It has been widely known that the very first astronauts were not exactly model citizens. Yet their acts of disorderly conduct were set aside under the guise of “boys will be boys.” Nowak though is at a disadvantage, as the standards for astronauts both on and off the job have increased since the late 1960’s. What does this mess mean for NASA? It is too early to surmise what the resounding effects will be. But it is fair to assume that the agency has been tainted. At the very least I would expect incredibly tougher standards, even tougher than the present time to become an astronaut.

Damn, there goes that career choice...