{"id":87978,"date":"2015-04-06T23:20:00","date_gmt":"2015-04-07T03:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?migration=converted-node-352360"},"modified":"2023-07-25T11:26:03","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T15:26:03","slug":"poem-by-american-matriarch-flown-on-orion-presented-to-nasa-administrator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/artemis\/orion\/poem-by-american-matriarch-flown-on-orion-presented-to-nasa-administrator\/","title":{"rendered":"Poem by American Matriarch Flown on Orion Presented to NASA Administrator"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1599\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"NASA Adminstrator Bolden accepts framed piece of writing with image\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg 3853w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=300,234 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=768,600 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=1024,800 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=1536,1200 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=2048,1599 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=400,312 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=600,469 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=900,703 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=1200,937 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?resize=2000,1562 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, left, accepts the gift of a portion of the writings of Dr. Maya Angelou that were flown aboard the Orion spacecraft during EFT-1 in December of 2014 from her great grandchildren, Brandon Johnson, second from left, and Caylin Johnson, right, during a ceremony on Monday, April 6, 2015 at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC. <strong>Credits: NASA\/Aubrey Gemignani<\/strong><\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>During the first flight test of NASA\u2019s Orion, the spacecraft flew more than 3,600 miles into space to test many of the systems critical to safety before it begins carrying astronauts to new destinations in the solar system, including to an asteroid and on toward Mars. While the flight tested thousands of hardware and software elements, Orion also carried with it several mementos and commemorative items to mark the spacecraft\u2019s march toward enabling human deep space exploration, including poetry written by American poet Dr. Maya Angelou.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1363\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Framed piece of text with image at left\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg 4928w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=768,511 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=1024,682 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=1536,1022 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=2048,1363 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=400,266 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=600,399 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=900,599 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=1200,799 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_1ag1567_0.jpg?resize=2000,1331 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">\u201cA Brave and Startling Truth\u201d written by Dr. Maya Angelou and flown aboard the Orion spacecraft during EFT-1 in December of 2014, seen here, was gifted to NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and senior representatives from NASA and Lockheed Martin by Dr. Angelou\u2019s family during a ceremony on Monday, April 6, 2015 at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC. <strong>Credits: NASA\/Aubrey Gemignani<\/strong><\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Text of Angelou\u2019s poem, <em>A Brave and Startling Truth<\/em> flown on Orion during its December 2014 voyage into space was presented April 6 to NASA Administrator Charles Bolden during a ceremony at the agency\u2019s Headquarters in Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt is fitting that Maya Angelou\u2019s prophetic words be flown not only outside the bounds of our Earth, but on the maiden voyage of a spacecraft that represents humanity\u2019s aspirations to move beyond our planet, to reach higher, and become more than we have ever been,\u201d said Bolden. \u201cThrough art, and the unique perspective of people like Maya Angelou, our discoveries, and the new facts and expanded understanding brought to us by exploration, are transformed into meaning.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Angelou was a renowned and influential American voice. She was a celebrated poet, memoirist, educator and civil rights activist, and passed away a few months before Orion\u2019s flight test.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the ceremony at NASA Headquarters, Bolden was joined by Angelou\u2019s son, Guy B. Johnson, and grandsons Elliott Jones and Colin A. Johnson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe are honored to continue the legacy of Dr. Maya Angelou with her literary items flown on Orion,\u201d said Colin A. Johnson. \u201cThey truly embody my grandmother\u2019s quote, \u2018I stand alone and go forth as thousand\u2019 as they represent all on us on this planet as they push the edges of what we think is achievable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lockheed Martin, NASA\u2019s prime contractor for Orion, composed the manifest for the flight test in collaboration with NASA. The company\u2019s vice president and program manager for Orion, Mike Hawes, also attended the ceremony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSo much of Dr. Angelou\u2019s work speaks to human ambition and dreams,\u201d said Hawes. \u201cIt was an honor to take some of her work with us on Orion\u2019s first flight\u2014a moment in history signifying the pursuit of dreams for many years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Orion\u2019s successful flight was an uncrewed two orbit, 4.5 hour test that compiled many of the riskiest events Orion and its future crews will experience during their missions. After flying 3,600 miles in altitude, Orion reentered the atmosphere at speeds of 20000 mph and temperatures of about 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. Other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/content\/orion-flight-test-to-carry-mementos-and-inspirational-items\/\" rel=\"noopener\">items<\/a> were flown on Orion in several stowage lockers placed in the spacecraft before its flight, including an assortment of flags, coins, patches, pins, educational items and a variety artistic works. Other excerpts of Angelou\u2019s writings were also flown, including <em>When Great Trees Fall, Our Grandmothers, On the Pulse of Morning, Phenomenal Woman, And Still I Rise, Caged Bird, Weekend Glory<\/em> and the book <em>I Shall Not Be Moved<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Engineers around the country already are hard at work preparing the next Orion spacecraft for its journey farther into space. During Exploration Mission-1, an uncrewed Orion will fly atop NASA\u2019s Space Launch System rocket to a distant retrograde orbit around the moon, where the agency will relocate a boulder from an asteroid for exploration by astronauts in the 2020s. Other commemorative items to inspire future generations and mark the deep space journey may fly on Orion during the mission.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During the first flight test of NASA\u2019s Orion, the spacecraft flew more than 3,600 miles into space to test many of the systems critical to safety before it begins carrying astronauts to new destinations in the solar system, including to an asteroid and on toward Mars. While the flight tested thousands of hardware and software [...]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":119912,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2683,3783],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[],"coauthors":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Poem by American Matriarch Flown on Orion Presented to NASA Administrator","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/artemis\/orion\/poem-by-american-matriarch-flown-on-orion-presented-to-nasa-administrator\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missions\/artemis\/orion\/poem-by-american-matriarch-flown-on-orion-presented-to-nasa-administrator\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg"},"articleSection":"Missions","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah A. Loff"}],"creator":["Sarah A. 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Loff\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":4,"time_ago":"9 years","featured_image":{"id":119912,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/20150406_2ag9452_0.jpg","title":"Dr. Maya Angelou Family Special Presentation to NASA","alt":"NASA Adminstrator Bolden accepts framed piece of writing with image","caption":"NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, left, accepts the gift of a portion of the writings of Dr. Maya Angelou that were flown aboard the Orion spacecraft during EFT-1 in December of 2014 from her great grandchildren, Brandon Johnson, second from left, and Caylin Johnson, right, during a ceremony on Monday, April 6, 2015 at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC.  Photo Credit: (NASA\/Aubrey Gemignani)"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87978"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87978"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87978\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":450679,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87978\/revisions\/450679"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/119912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87978"},{"taxonomy":"news-tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-tags?post=87978"},{"taxonomy":"internal-terms","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal-terms?post=87978"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=87978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}