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Chickasaw astronaut awed by spacewalk©Associated PressNovember 28, 2002 CAPE CANAVERAL -- The first American Indian astronaut said Wednesday he is inspired and humbled to be flying -- and walking -- in space. John Herrington, a member of the Chickasaw Nation, helped install a $390-million girder on the international space station during a seven-hour spacewalk Wednesday. "It was an awe-inspiring moment to be able to go out of the hatch and to see the Earth's horizon and see the space station against that," he said in a series of news interviews. When asked by the Chickasaw Times how his perspective on Thanksgiving would be affected by going out on a second spacewalk today, Herrington replied with a laugh: "I'll be really hungry when I come back in." Herrington said he will probably celebrate with one of NASA's prepackaged chicken and rice dinners or maybe some turkey. The 44-year-old Navy commander became the first American Indian in space with shuttle Endeavour's launch last weekend. The governor of the Chickasaw Nation in Ada, Okla., Bill Anoatubby, called to wish Herrington all the best during the mission. NASA's space station program manager, Bill Gerstenmaier, said Wednesday that the three computers and all the other systems inside the newly installed girder were working fine. Gerstenmaier said everything remains on track for next year's station construction work. This week, Russia confirmed to NASA its plans to provide two Soyuz lifeboats and three supply ships next year for the orbiting complex, NASA spokesman Dwayne Brown said. Top Russian space officials had said a few weeks ago that they might reduce their space station contributions.
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