[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 110 (Friday, July 30, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1702-E1703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        COMMEMORATING THE RECENT SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA MISSION

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                       HON. STEVEN T. KUYKENDALL

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 30, 1999

  Mr. KUYKENDALL. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate and commemorate 
the recent Space Shuttle Columbia mission. This is a historic event on 
many levels.
  As many of you know, the Space Shuttle Columbia is the first shuttle 
mission being commanded by a woman. Eileen Collins, a U.S. Air Force 
colonel who became an astronaut in 1990, is leading this important 
mission. One of the mission objectives is to deploy one of the largest 
payloads ever, the Chandra Observatory. Ms. Collins is an experienced 
astronaut who has previously flown on two shuttle missions to the 
Russian space station Mir. Her experience and professionalism was a 
great asset to his mission.
  The mission that the crew of Columbia undertook was a sizable task. 
At more than 45 feet in length and weighing more than 5 tons, the 
Chandra Observatory is one of the largest objects ever placed in Earth 
orbit by a space shuttle. Originally called the Advanced X-ray 
Astrophysics Facility, the satellite was renamed the Chandra X-Ray 
Observatory in honor of the late Indian-American Nobel Laureate 
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar Chandrasekhar, one of the foremost 
astrophysicists of the 20th century.
  Chandra is designed to give scientists images of violent, high-energy 
activity in the universe where temperatures can reach millions of 
degrees and objects are accelerated to nearly the speed of light. The 
observatory will provide information on the nature of objects ranging 
from comets in our solar system to quasars at the edge of the 
observable universe. The goal is to understand the structure and 
evolution of the universe, such as the composition and location of so-
called dark matter and the source of power driving explosions in 
distant galaxies. I also want to recognize TRW, the primary contractor 
of Chandra which is based in my district, which did a first-rate job on 
its construction of the observatory and seeing the project through with 
care.
  Mr. Speaker, I also take this opportunity to send my best wishes to 
the students from the Steven White Middle School of Los Angeles. These 
students, who have an avid interest in space and science issues, were 
on hand to witness this historic launch. Working in conjunction with 
TRW, the students had a first-hand experience by getting a tour of the 
facility where Chandra was build and speaking to

[[Page E1703]]

engineers who worked on the project. I am happy they had the 
opportunity to go to Florida to witness the launch. I know it was an 
event they will always remember.

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