spacetoday.net: O'Keefe unveils new NASA vision, mission statements

Posted: Sat, Apr 13, 2002, 12:17 PM ET (1617 GMT)
Sean O'Keefe (White House)

NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe outlined the new vision and mission statements for NASA during a speech Friday afternoon at Syracuse University. The statements say that NASA's goals are to improve life on Earth and search for and expand life beyond Earth. O'Keefe provided few additional details about his plans for NASA beyond what he has said in speeches given over the last few weeks. The major news from the speech was his announcement that Barbara Morgan, a former teacher and runner-up to Christa McAuliffe in the original Teacher in Space competition, will fly on a shuttle mission after the "core complete" assembly phase of the International Space Station is completed in 2004. O'Keefe said NASA was starting a new Educator in Space program, and would cooperate with the Department of Education to recruit new teachers to become astronauts to fly on future missions.