Barbara Morgan, educator, astronaut, readies for takeoff

Barbara Morgan, longtime member of the International Reading Association, is set to take off on the 22nd flight to the International Space Station in orbit around Earth. STS-118, as the mission is called, will be the first flight for Endeavour since 2002. Launch remains on target for Wednesday, August 8, 2007, at 6:36 p.m. (EDT), according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration website. Morgan served as the “Teacher in Space” alternate to Christa McAuliffe for the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger mission. After the Challenger tragedy, Morgan continued her ties with NASA and eventually left her job as an elementary school teacher in Idaho to become a full-time astronaut in 1998. For updates and more about the mission, including links to educational activities, visit the NASA space shuttle website.