Board Members Keith Cowing, Miles O'Brien To Support Him On Journey

Former Astronaut Dr. Scott Parazynski is returning to Mt. Everest, the highest peak in the Himalayas, with the support of the Challenger Center for Space Science Education and its network of Learning Centers.

Two members of the Challenger Center's Board of Directors, television journalist Miles O'Brien and web journalist Keith Cowing will be assisting Scott in his ascent by providing support both at Everest Base Camp and back in the US.

The first stop for Scott this year was Kathmandu. He is now trekking in to Everest Base Camp. After arriving at Everest, he will spend the next several weeks working his way progressively higher on the slopes of Mount Everest, with the goal of standing on its summit in the 2nd or 3rd week of May.

Parazynski hopes that teachers and students will follow his adventures, enabled by base camp and stateside teammates Keith Cowing and Miles O'Brien. To help students get engaged in the expedition, Scott plans to post responses to student questions, photos, videos, and scientific experiment information on his blogs.

The expedition will also be documented on the Discovery Channel, for which Scott will serve as the climbing team doctor. He also plans to conduct biological and geological research high on the mountain for colleagues at NASA, and perform some field testing of hardware, including a prototype lunar geological hammer and a hydration system he developed at NASA.

Scott will also be using a SPOT Satellite Personal Tracker that will track his movements throughout his trip. By visiting an online resource, students can see where Scott is on the mountain each day, all the way to the very summit. He plans to return to the US in late May.

FMI: www.challenger.org