This week's Geek of the Week started out exploring the oceans, but went on to prove that the the sky was NOT the limit. From the very bottoms of the oceans to outer space, this adventurous geek has explored it all!
Kathryn Sullivan was born in 1951 in Paterson, New Jersey. As a graduate student at Dalhousie University, she participating in several expeditions that studied the geology of the sea floors of both the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
In 1978, Dr. Sullivan was selected as an astronaut by NASA. On her first flight in 1984, she became the first American woman to walk in space. She flew on two more missions. One of these was Discovery's 1990 deployment of the Hubble telescope; the other was the inaugural Spacelab Mission to Planet Earth, an intensive nine-day study of our atomosphere.
After retiring from NASA, Kathryn Sullivan became the chief scientist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and then director of the Center of Science and Industry (COSI)* , a science museum in Columbus, Ohio. With her at the helm, COSI became a leading innovator of hands-on, inquiry based science learning.
COSI has an AMAZING ocean exhibit featuring this statue of Poseidon.
While at COSI, Dr. Sullivan served on the Pew Oceans Commission, which studied the effects of U.S. Ocean laws and policies on marine ecosystems. In 2003, she left COSI to become the director of the Battelle Center for Mathematics and Science Education Policy at The Ohio State University.
Since 2011, Dr. Sullivan has served the government in various capacities. Her current position is Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator.
For her pioneering spirit and her devotion to education, her contributions to science and her service to the planet and the American people, Kathryn Sullivan is truly worthy to be a Geek of the Week!
*Editor's note: Great museum! I've slept there!
Learn more about Kathryn Sullivan:
http://www.britannica.com/biography/Kathryn-Sullivan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathryn_D._Sullivan
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/sullivan-kd.html
Photo credit: By NASA - http://astro.zeto.czest.pl/astros/151.jpg (original source at NASA no longer available), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8609224
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