[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 10]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 13783]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




HONORING THE STATE OF TEXAS FOR ITS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE NATION'S CIVIL 
                             SPACE PROGRAM

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. NICK LAMPSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 23, 2007

  Mr. LAMPSON. Madam Speaker, a resolution honoring the State of Texas 
for its contributions to the Nation's civil space program.
  Whereas the Johnson Space Center (JSC), originally established as the 
Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, Texas in 1961 and later renamed in 
honor of President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1973, continues to lead the 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) efforts in human 
space exploration;
  Whereas JSC Houston is the home of NASA's Mission Control, the 
Astronaut Corps, and is the premier center for our nation's human space 
flight and related scientific and medical research efforts;
  Whereas JSC's team of dedicated professionals has made advances in 
science, technology, engineering and medicine that enable us to explore 
our world and universe as never before, and to derive unparalleled 
benefits from that exploration;
  Whereas JSC currently employs over 3,200 civil servants that include 
the NASA astronaut corps and over 12,000 contractor employees, which 
makes a significant positive economic impact on both the state of Texas 
and the city of Houston;
  Whereas NASA's Explorer School program in Texas brings together 
educators, administrators, students and families in sustained 
involvement with NASA's education programs and provides grants to 
schools to support the purchase of technology tools, online services 
and in-service support for the integration of technology applications 
to engage students in advanced science and mathematics investigations;
  Whereas NASA's next mission--Space Shuttle Mission STS-117--is 
scheduled to launch this summer and honors the state of Texas by having 
3 hometown astronauts aboard Mission Specialist James F. Reilly of 
Mesquite and Mission Specialists Patrick G. Forrester and John D. 
Olivas, both of EI Paso; and
  Whereas native Texans and Astronauts Robert S. Kimbrough and Shannon 
Walker have qualified for future space flights as mission specialists, 
Astronaut Timothy L. Kopra is currently in training at JSC for future 
flight assignments, Astronaut Michael E. Fossum has flown 1 space 
flight, and Astronaut Kenneth D. Cockrell has flown on 5 space flights: 
Now, therefore, be it
  Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
  (1) Recognize these remarkable achievements to the nation's Civil 
Space Program by the State of Texas and its residents; and
  (2) Congratulate NASA employees, astronauts, students, and teachers, 
for their ongoing contributions to the advancement of United States 
engineering, scientific, and aeronautic capacity, ensuring a brighter 
and stronger future for this Nation.

                          ____________________