An astronaut drove 900 miles to attack her ex’s girlfriend in a disturbing case that completely changed NASA forever.
The incident dates back to 2007 after Lisa Nowak, who is an American aeronautical engineer and former NASA astronaut, was selected to join the Space Shuttle Discovery on a 13-day mission in July 2006 where she acted as a mission flight engineer, operating the robotic arm for several spacewalks.
However, in February 2007, Nowak made the decision to drive 900 miles from Houston, Texas, all the way to Orlando, Florida, with items including a trench coat, wig, pepper spray, a BB gun, rope, trash bags and an 8-inch knife, found in her car.
At Orlando International Airport, the mother of three walked up to Colleen Shipman’s car and banged on the window.
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Claiming that she needed a ride after her boyfriend had not turned up, Nowak burst into tears and Shipman rolled down her window.
Instantly, Nowak pepper sprayed her, shouting ‘you b****’, before running away.
When she was later arrested, Nowak was charged with attempted murder and kidnapping.
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The media discovered that Shipman had been dating Bill Oefelein, an astronaut that Nowak had previously had an affair with.
Prior to the attack, a jealous Nowak had snuck into Oefelein’s apartment and read emails between the couple. She also called him multiple times a day.
The case was later dubbed the ‘Astronaut Love Triangle’.
After initially pleading not guilty, Nowak later agreed to a plea deal and pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of burglary and misdemeanor battery. She was sentenced to a year’s probation.
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During the court hearing, she said she was ‘sincerely sorry’ for her actions.
How did the Lisa Nowak incident change NASA?
In response to the incident, NASA changed the way the agency evaluates its astronauts’ mental well being. Instead of only having psychological evaluations at selection, going forward it would have continuous assessments.
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It would also introduce mandated access to counseling for its staff as well as launching a formal astronaut Code of Conduct.
As of 2008, the Behavioural and Health Performance programme (BHP) was formed.
Nick Kanas, a psychiatrist who previously screened NASA astronauts, said: “Before 2008, psychiatric screening was only done for astronaut candidates.
“Now all astronauts are screened by a psychiatrist every year regardless if they are flying or not.”
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Oefelein and Shipman later got married, and Nowak is said to be living a quiet life in Texas, working in the private sector.