Retired Army colonel to join shuttle mission - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

Retired Army colonel to join shuttle mission

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA says a retired Army colonel is set to make his third journey into space.

Officials say astronaut Patrick Forrester of Springfield, Va., is flying on the space shuttle Discovery’s next mission to the International Space Station. NASA says the launch is scheduled for Aug. 25 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Forrester is one of seven astronauts who will fly on the mission. The 13-day flight will deliver science and storage racks, a freezer to store research samples and a new sleeping compartment. It also will deliver a treadmill named after comedian Stephen Colbert following an online contest.

Forrester earned his bachelors degree from the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., in 1979, and his masters degree from the University of Virginia in 1989.