WASHINGTON—Two St. Louis area congressmen got a front-row seat for Tuesday’s space shuttle launch in Florida, where a St. Louis native was on board for a trip to the International Space Station.
Robert Behnken, of Creve Couer, was serving as Mission Specialist on the trip, in which the crew was set to work on the space station.
Reps. Russ Carnahan, D-St. Louis, and John Shimkus, R-Collinsville, both attended the launch at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The shuttle took off on schedule—at 2:28 am Tuesday morning—with no complications.
“It was pretty darn amazing,” said Shimkus. “The light is brilliant … and the sound waves kind of make your chest vibrate,” even though they watched from three miles away—the closest distance allowed. “It’s the most powerful energy release that we as humans will see, short of things we don’t want to see,” Shimkus added.
“It was an amazing experience witnessing the Endeavour lift into space especially knowing that a St. Louis area native was onboard,” said Carnahan.
Carnahan said Behnken’s duties would include three spacewalks, serving as the “spacewalk coordinator” and operating the space station robotic arm. (See story in PD’s Metro section today.)
Carnahan and Shimkus were among the 19 members of Congress attending the launch—a congressionally sponsored trip organized By Rep. Nick Lampson, D-Texas.
Carnahan got to go as a member of the Science committee; Shimkus just lucked out, snagging the last open seat.
But he said it will definitely affect his outlook on NASA funding.
“Sometimes there are tough votes, especially after tragedy. [People ask] ‘Do you continue to fund manned space flights’?” Shimkus said. “But there’s something important about the human spirit of space exploration” that this trip brought home for him, he said.