THE REMNANT VOICE:
Today, The Remnant Voice pays tribute to Space Shuttle Challenger STS-51L Mission Specialist Ronald E. McNair.
Ronald E. McNair was born October 21, 1950, in Lake City, South Carolina. Died January 28, 1986. Survived by wife Cheryl, & two children. Was 5th degree black belt Karate instructor & performing jazz saxophonist. Enjoyed running, boxing, football, playing cards, & cooking.
Ronald E. McNair graduated from Carver High School, Lake City, South Carolina, in 1967; received BS in Physics from North Carolina A&T State University in 1971 and Ph.D. in Physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1976; received honorary doctorate of Laws from NC A&T State University in 1978, an honorary doctorate of Science from Morris College in 1980, & an honorary doctorate of science from the University of South Carolina in 1984.
Graduated magna cum laude from North Carolina A&T (‘71) - named Presidential Scholar (‘67-’71), Ford Foundation Fellow (‘71-’74), National Fellowship Fund Fellow (‘74-’75), NATO Fellow (‘75) - winner of Omega Psi Phi Scholar of Year Award (‘75), Los Angeles Public School System’s Service Commendation (‘79), Distinguished Alumni Award (‘79), National Society of Black Professional Engineers Distinguished National Scientist Award (‘79), Friend of Freedom Award (‘81), Who’s Who Among Black Americans (‘80), an AAU Karate Gold Medal (‘76), 5 Regional Blackbelt Karate Championships.
Selected as astronaut candidate by NASA in January ‘78, Ronald E. McNair completed 1-year training & evaluation period in August ‘79, qualifying for assignment as mission specialist astronaut on Space Shuttle flight crews.
First flew as mission specialist on STS 41-B launched from Kennedy Space Center on February 3, ‘84. Crew included spacecraft commander, Mr. Vance Brand, the pilot, Cdr. Robert L. Gibson, & fellow mission specialists, Capt. Bruce McCandless II, & Lt. Col. Robert L. Stewart. The flight accomplished proper shuttle deployment of two Hughes 376 communications satellites, & the flight testing of rendezvous sensors & computer programs. Marked the first flight of the Manned Maneuvering Unit & first use of the Canadian arm (operated by McNair) to position EVA crewman around Challenger’s payload bay. Included were German SPAS-01 Satellite, acoustic levitation & chemical separation experiments, Cinema 360 motion picture filming, five Getaway Specials, & numerous mid-deck experiments - all of which Dr. McNair assumed primary responsibility. Challenger culminated in first landing on the runway at Kennedy Space Center on February 11, ’84.
Dr. Ronald E. McNair died on January 28, ‘86 when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded after launch from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, also taking the lives of the spacecraft commander, Mr. F.R. Scobee, the pilot, Commander M.J. Smith (USN), mission specialists, Lieutenant Colonel E.S. Onizuka (USAF), & Dr. J.A. Resnik, & two civilian payload specialists, Mr. G.B. Jarvis and Mrs. S. C. McAuliffe.
His wife, Cheryl McNair filed the first lawsuit related to the explosion. It charged Morton Thiokol with negligence for knowingly using a defective design and failing to warn the astronauts of the problem and inform them of the debate over launching that took place the night before the doomed flight. Many family members of other astronauts followed Cheryl McNair's lead and filed lawsuits later.
At his funeral, Ronald McNair was eulogized as a brilliant yet humble man, deeply religious and devoted above all to community service. He had been a frequent speaker for groups of school children and was once quoted by Time as declaring at one such appearance: "The true courage of space flight ... is not sitting aboard 6 million [pounds] of fire and thunder as one rockets away from this planet. True courage comes in enduring ... persevering, the preparation and believing in oneself."
Cheryl continues to serve as a Founding Director for Challenger Center for Space Science Education, the educational organization founded by the seven Challenger family members to continue the crew's mission. Originally from South Carolina, she now makes her home in Houston, Texas, with her two children, Reginald and Joy.
The McNair Scholars program is dedicated to preserving Dr. McNair's legacy of scholarship and accomplishments. The UC Santa Barbara McNair Scholars Program, initiated by the U.S. Congress, is funded by the US Department of Education Ronald E. McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program as part of the Federal TRIO Program which includes the McNair Scholars Program, Student Support Services, Talent Search, Educational Opportunity Centers and Upward Bound.
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