St. Paul astronaut had fun in space

by Tom Crann, Minnesota Public Radio

St. Paul, Minn. — The launch was delayed. And delayed again. There was debris floating in space. And then there was that press conference where Minnesota astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper seemed to be showing the effects of space travel and collapsed.

Those of us in Minnesota were watching every development in the mission of the space shuttle Atlantis a bit more closely than in other parts of the country. All eyes were on Stefanyshyn-Piper, a native of St. Paul and the first Minnesota woman in space, and one of only six women to ever go on a space walk.

She and her fellow astronauts made it back safely late last month, and she talked with MPR's Tom Crann from the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Broadcast Dates

• All Things Considered, 10/03/2006, 5:52 p.m.