Notable SC Astronauts

Charles Bolden

This Columbia native graduated from the US Naval Academy and joined the Marine Corps. He flew over 100 combat missions during the Vietnam conflict. Chosen by NASA for astronaut training in 1980, General Bolden flew four missions on space shuttles, commanding a mission on Atlantis in 1992. President Obama chose Bolden to head NASA in 2009.

Ronald McNair

Dr. Ronald McNair was the second African American to fly in space. Born in Lake City in 1950, McNair was a physicist. He perished with the rest of the crew in the 1986 space shuttle Challenger disaster.