It has orbited the earth 142 times, traveling 3.7 million miles during 10 days in outer space on the STS-70 Discovery shuttle.
Now it has made its final landing at the Toledo-Lucas County Main Library in downtown Toledo.
One of Toledo's ceremonial glass keys - carried aboard the 1995 NASA STS-70 Discovery mission - will be on display in the children's area of the library.
It was unveiled yesterday by former NASA astronaut Don Thomas. The key is set in a framed tribute that also includes photos and memorabilia from the flight.
Mr. Thomas said he hopes the children who see it are inspired and that it fuels a desire for space exploration.
"We hope that it will spark their imagination," he said.
He said within 30 or 40 years, NASA hopes to send astronauts to explore Mars.
"These are the kids that are going to grow up and be the first people to set foot on Mars," he said.
Mr. Thomas, born in Cleveland and a graduate of Case Western Reserve University, became an astronaut in 1991.
A veteran of four space flights, Mr. Thomas has logged more than 1,040 hours in space and retired from NASA in 2007. He is director of the Willard Hackerman Academy of Mathematics and Science at Towson University in Maryland.
The 1995 Discovery flight, which carried the glass key, had an all-Ohio crew, with Mr.
Thomas and three other astronauts from Ohio. The fifth crew member, not from the state, was made an honorary Ohioan by the governor's office, Mr. Thomas explained.
Crew members carried Buckeyes in the pockets of their flight suits, and the mission's uniform patch, designed by the crew, was in the shape of an Ohio State University block O.
The glass key made its way to the shuttle in 1995 after John Alexander, then the Toledo mayor's chief of staff, heard about the NASA flight with the all-Ohio crew. He wanted something representative of Toledo aboard.
He called Mike Bartell, The Blade's night city editor, who has covered the space program for about 20 years. They decided one of the city's ceremonial glass keys should make the trip.
Mr. Bartell contacted the mission's commander, Tom Henricks, a native of northwest Ohio. However, NASA officials at first were not thrilled with the proposal, worried the key might break in space and the glass shards could affect the shuttle's sensitive electronics.
So NASA placed the key in a specially made container to keep it safe.
After its return to Earth, the key was placed at COSI. The hands-on children's science museum closed in December, and Mr. Henricks requested the key be given to the library to allow children to have a chance to see it.
At yesterday's news conference, Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner thanked Mr. Bartell, calling him a "quiet, silent hero" for his role in the getting the key on the shuttle and for educating Toledoans about the space program.
The space theme will continue at the Main Library, 325 Michigan St., today at 2:30 p.m. with free activities in the children's library and civic plaza rooftop.
Mr. Thomas will be available, and COSI on Wheels will have activities such as demonstrations of liquid nitrogen and experiments with space shuttle tiles.
Contact Kate Giammarise at:
kgiammarise@theblade.com
or 419-724-6133.
First Published May 3, 2008, 2:32 p.m.
