Wednesday’s actions by NASA to terminate the status of Capt. Lisa Marie Nowak, USN, as an astronaut, effective the next day, raise questions of fairness and of due process, which is the heart of our legal system.
This unprecedented quest for speed was emphasized by the fact that Nowak’s official biography was simultaneously, overnight, moved from the “Active Astronauts” category to the with a bland notation that she “returned to navy duty effective March 8, 2007.”
A month ago, Capt. Nowak was charged with trying to kidnap a woman she regarded as her romantic rival for the affections of a Navy Cmdr. Bill Oefelein, a space shuttle pilot.
Status as an astronaut eligible for (additional) flights is perhaps the dearest professional attribute possessed by astronauts. To deprive her of this status without, as NASA’s press release says, “[reflecting] any position by NASA on the criminal charges pending in Florida” strains the credibility of the reader.
I do not condone any of the purported misconduct by Capt. Nowak, but it is just that: purported misconduct, allegations not yet presented to a court of law or to any sort of formal administrative review board.
The assertion that NASA “lacks the administrative means to deal appropriately with the criminal charges pending against Nowak … [because she is not] a NASA civil servant” is specious. The appropriate administrative means are available through the senior naval officer at the Johnson Space Center, a position in which I served during my last few years in the Astronaut Office. What I could not do in that capacity was to convene a special or general court martial – which may be the direction in which all this is headed.
The Associated Press reported it was the first time NASA has publicly fired an astronaut, according to space historian Roger Launius of the Smithsonian Institution. She is also the first active astronaut to be charged with a felony, he said.
It appears that NASA is acting as rapidly as possible to shed the unfavorable publicity associated with this unfortunate incident. Had it elected to support her, however, within NASA itself there are 38 astronauts currently serving in a variety of management positions. Surely a 39th, non-operational, position could have been found in which Capt. Nowak could have performed useful, but non-flight related, functions while defending herself against the pending charges.
Since the admission in 1978 of the first group of astronauts containing women, these individuals and their successors have served honorably and with distinction. Dr. Shannon Lucid spent 188 days in the Russian space station MIR with two (male) Russian cosmonauts. Barbara Morgan spent 21 years as a “Teacher in Waiting” before finally getting a flight assignment for this summer. Dr. Mae Jemison was the first female African-American astronaut. Colonel Eileen Collins, USAF, became the first female shuttle commander.
Capt. Nowak herself performed admirably on the STS-121 mission this past summer, logging 13 days in space. I believe that the public supports this diverse participation, not only for the achievements of the individuals, but as role models and inspirations for the youths of today.
Capt. Nowak is, first and foremost, a naval officer. She graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1985, having lived in a “co-educational” dormitory for four years, and worked and studied within a gender-mixed environment – both in the Navy and while at NASA. She married and had three children, and should have been well-accommodated to such an environment. Her current situation is a grave one, but she has a constitutional right to due process.
In no way do I support her alleged conduct, but neither do I feel it just for her to be tried in the court of sensationalism. This action may be styled as “state of Florida vs. Lisa Marie Nowak,” but is also a wake-up call to NASA management to more closely take note of major crises, such as leaving one’s spouse and family, in the lives of its critical and highly stressed personnel. (More evidence to support this argument is that Capt. Nowak’s estranged husband is a NASA flight controller.)
Our astronauts deserve that much, at least.
Bruce McCandless of Conifer is an astronaut emeritus with 24 years of NASA astronaut service and 32 years in the Navy.
