Minnechaug Regional High School Alumni
Wilbraham, Massachusetts (MA)
Alumni Stories
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Janice Voss
Class of 1972
Janice E. Voss
NASA Astronaut
Nationality American
Status Deceased
Born (1956-10-08)October 8, 1956
South Bend, Indiana, U.S.
Died February 6, 2012(2012-02-06) (aged 55)
Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S.[1]
Other occupation Engineer
Time in space 49d 3h 49m
Selection 1990 NASA Group
Missions STS-57, STS-63, STS-83, STS-94, STS-99
Mission insignia
Janice Elaine Voss (October 8, 1956 – February 6, 2012) was an American engineer and a NASA astronaut. She flew in space five times, jointly holding the record for American women.[2] Voss died on February 6, 2012, after a battle with breast cancer.[3][4]
Education:
Voss graduated from Minnechaug Regional High School in 1972.[5] She earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Purdue University while working on a co-op at the Johnson Space Center. She earned an S.M. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT in 1977. She went on to earn a doctorate in aeronautics/astronautics from MIT in 1987.
Career:
Voss was selected as an astronaut candidate in 1990 and flew as a mission specialist on missions STS-57 (1993), STS-63 (1995), STS-83 (1997), STS-94 (1997) and STS-99 (2000).[6][7] All of her flights included another female astronaut as well.[8]
During her career as an astronaut, she participated in the first Shuttle rendezvous with the Mir space station on STS-63: it flew around the station, testing communications and inflight manoeuvres for later missions, but did not actually dock. As an STS-99 crew member on the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission, she and her fellow crew members worked continuously in shifts to produce what was at the time the most accurate digital topographical map of the Earth.[3]
From October 2004 to November 2007, she was Science Director for NASA's Kepler Space Observatory, an Earth-orbiting satellite designed to find Earth-like extrasolar planets in nearby solar systems. It was launched in March 2009 and was still operational at the time of her death at age 55 from breast cancer.
At the Astronaut Office Station Branch, she served as the Payloads Lead. She also worked for Orbital Sciences Corporation in flight operations support.
NASA Astronaut
Nationality American
Status Deceased
Born (1956-10-08)October 8, 1956
South Bend, Indiana, U.S.
Died February 6, 2012(2012-02-06) (aged 55)
Scottsdale, Arizona, U.S.[1]
Other occupation Engineer
Time in space 49d 3h 49m
Selection 1990 NASA Group
Missions STS-57, STS-63, STS-83, STS-94, STS-99
Mission insignia
Janice Elaine Voss (October 8, 1956 – February 6, 2012) was an American engineer and a NASA astronaut. She flew in space five times, jointly holding the record for American women.[2] Voss died on February 6, 2012, after a battle with breast cancer.[3][4]
Education:
Voss graduated from Minnechaug Regional High School in 1972.[5] She earned a bachelor's degree in engineering from Purdue University while working on a co-op at the Johnson Space Center. She earned an S.M. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT in 1977. She went on to earn a doctorate in aeronautics/astronautics from MIT in 1987.
Career:
Voss was selected as an astronaut candidate in 1990 and flew as a mission specialist on missions STS-57 (1993), STS-63 (1995), STS-83 (1997), STS-94 (1997) and STS-99 (2000).[6][7] All of her flights included another female astronaut as well.[8]
During her career as an astronaut, she participated in the first Shuttle rendezvous with the Mir space station on STS-63: it flew around the station, testing communications and inflight manoeuvres for later missions, but did not actually dock. As an STS-99 crew member on the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission, she and her fellow crew members worked continuously in shifts to produce what was at the time the most accurate digital topographical map of the Earth.[3]
From October 2004 to November 2007, she was Science Director for NASA's Kepler Space Observatory, an Earth-orbiting satellite designed to find Earth-like extrasolar planets in nearby solar systems. It was launched in March 2009 and was still operational at the time of her death at age 55 from breast cancer.
At the Astronaut Office Station Branch, she served as the Payloads Lead. She also worked for Orbital Sciences Corporation in flight operations support.
Recent Members
| Dawn Dawn Anne Johnson | 1974 |
| Jason Petrone | 2006 |
| Jeffrey Jeffrey N Stoller | 1974 |
| Jim Bayerle | 1971 |
| Kathy Cantara Wrede | 1984 |
| Marilyn Gorman Fil | 1984 |
| Sheila O'brien | 2013 |
| Tom Jalbert | 1974 |
Military Alumni
Honoring Our Heroes
This area is dedicated to our alumni that have served or are serving in our armed forces!
Lost Class Rings
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Happy Holidays!
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