Laurel Blair Salton Clark

Laurel Blair Salton Clark was an American aviation surgeon, captain in the United States Navy, NASA astronaut, and space shuttle mission specialist. Clark died along with her six crewmates in the Space Shuttle Columbia accident. She was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

Biography

Laurel Clark was born on March 10, 1961 in Ames, Iowa, but considered Racine, Wisconsin as her hometown. Clark died in the Columbia tragedy on February 1, 2003 over the southern United States 16 minutes before landing. She was married to Dr. Jonathan Clark, a former Navy captain and NASA flight surgeon who was part of the official panel that prepared the final 400-page report on the disaster, and her only child Ian Clark was born in 1996.

Education

A 1979 graduate of William Horlick High School, Racine, Wisconsin, Clark earned a BS in zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1983 and an MD from the same university in 1987.

Organizations

Aerospace Medical Association, Society of United States Naval Flight Surgeons.

Awards

Three Navy Commendation Medals, the National Defense Medal, the Foreign Service Ribbon.

Experience

Laurel Clark during NASA training.

During his medical studies, he was actively assigned to the Department of Diving Medicine at the Navy Experimental Diving Unit in March 1987. Upon completion of his studies, Clark went on to pursue a postgraduate degree in medicine with a specialization in pediatrics from 1987-1988 at the Bethesda Naval Hospital, Maryland. The following year, he completed Navy Underwater Medical Officer Training in Groton, Connecticut and Diving Medical Officer Training at the Navy Institute for Underwater Medicine at the Diving and Salvage Training Center in Panama City, Florida., and was appointed Health Officer for Radiation and Officer for Underwater Medicine. Subsequently, she was assigned as the Director of the Medical Department of Submarine Squadron 14 in Holy Loch, Scotland. During that assignment she conducted several evacuations of US submarines. After two years of operational experience, Clark was designated the Navy Submarine Medical Officer and Diving Medical Officer. At the Navy Aerospace Medical Institute in Pensacola, Florida, Laurel Clark underwent six months of aeromedical training and was appointed as a Flight Surgeon. Clark remained at MCAS Yuma, Arizona and was assigned as a Flight Surgeon for a Navy night attack Harrier squadron. There she made significant advances, practiced medicine in precarious places, and flew in various aircraft. Her squadron won the Marine Attack Squad of the Year award for their successful performance. At this time she was assigned as the Group Flight Surgeon for the Navy Air Group (MAG 13). Prior to her selection as an astronaut candidate, she served as a Flight Surgeon for a Navy training squadron in Pensacola, Florida. Clark was certified by the Board of Medical Examiners and obtained a Medical License in Wisconsin. Her military qualifications include Radiation Health Officer, Submarine Medical Officer, and Flight Surgeon for the Navy. Clark was also a Life Support Instructor, Advanced Cardiac Support Provider, Trauma Life Support Provider, and lastly, a Hyperbaric Chamber Counselor.

NASA experience

Once Dr. Clark was selected by NASA in April 1996, she reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1996. After completing two years of training and evaluation, she qualified for the flight assignment as mission specialist. From July 1997 to August 2000, Clark worked in the Cargo and Habitability Division of the Astronaut Office. Dr. Clark flew aboard STS-107 and logged 15 days, 22 hours, and 20 minutes in space.

Space flight experience

Mission STS-107 Columbia (January 16 – February 1, 2003). This 16-day mission was dedicated to scientific research, to which he was assigned 24 hours a day in two alternating shifts. The crew successfully carried out nearly 80 experiments. The mission ended in tragedy when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry over the skies of the southwestern United States with only 16 minutes to go before landing. The cause of this tragedy originated on launch day when a piece of insulating foam from the External Tank detached and damaged the lower part of the Orbiter's left wing, tearing off some thermal protection tiles. On the day of reentry, the absence of these tiles caused the internal structure to overheat, causing destabilization and consequently disintegration of the ship, killing its 7 crew members.

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