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Thursday, February 08, 2007

NASA reviews policy after astronaut goes beserk

NASA is reviewing its psychological screening process for astronauts, following astronaut Lisa Nowak's arrest for allegedly attempting to murder a romantic rival.

Police in Orlando, Florida, US, say that Nowak drove 1500 kilometres to try to kidnap and possibly kill Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman (see Astronaut accused of attempted murder released on bail). Both women may have been vying for the affections of NASA astronaut Bill Oefelein.

In response to the shocking event, NASA Administrator Michael Griffin has requested an internal review of the psychological screening procedures used to admit new astronauts. He also asked for a review of any follow-up psychological evaluations of working astronauts, including who conducts the screening.

I've busy with work and unable to post for a while. But the news on Nowak is unbelievable. This woman is a disgrace to NASA and a disgrace to the United States Navy. What's worse is that NASA, and I bet the Navy, never bothered to see the signs of her deranged behavior.

Let's hope NASA changes their policies to screen out such people, and not just at the start of a career, but throughout an astronaut's career and the same goes for the Navy.

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