Description: (Officer, Astronaut, Physicist)
Michael P. Anderson was a committed United States Air Force officer and NASA astronaut. He served as the payload commander and lieutenant colonel on the Space Shuttle Columbia, leading science experiments. Unfortunately, Anderson, along with his six crew members, lost their lives in the Columbia disaster during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. Despite the tragedy, Anderson's significant contributions to space exploration were honored with the posthumous award of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.