‘Space rose’ adds New Year’s parade to its 5.3 million mile journey (article from collectspace.com)

December 31, 2008 — On New Year’s Day in Pasadena, California, among the hundreds of thousands of roses covering nearly 50 flower-formed floats in the Tournament of Roses Parade, among the more than 12,000 roses covering the Bayer Advanced “Wizard of Oz”-themed float, will be the only rose among them all that truly flew “somewhere over the rainbow.”

The two-toned pink rose, appropriately of the variety that was named after the parade (“Tournament of Roses”), circled the Earth more than 200 times in February 2008, aboard space shuttle Atlantis. How the rose came to be there, and how it is now to be a part of the parade, came as a result of the author of “Roses For Dummies” working together with an astronaut, who also happened to be his younger brother.

“I have had a long interest in roses and have written a number of books on roses,” explained Lance Walheim in an interview with collectSPACE. “Everybody was always kidding me, why don’t you send up a rose with Rex? The challenges of doing that, well, my staged answer was, ‘Rex can’t even grow a rose in his own backyard, how is he going to grow one in space?’”

The idea however appealed to Lance, and to Rex, who at the time was preparing to embark on his second mission.

“I thought that would be a great idea,” shared the younger Walheim. “Since I am from California, and the Rose Parade is here in California, and he is a rose expert, it seemed like a neat idea to combine his career with my career.”

As both brothers recalled, the problem was how to do it. (more…)

UPDATE! latest photoS as the Space Shuttle Endeavour makes its way over SCH to say hello!! check it out!! photo just taken by Space Center Houston Staff at 12:20pm Dec.11! HIstory!

Special Message from the Shuttle Program Manager:

ON Dasher, on Dancer, on Prancer, ON ENDEAVOUR!

Even though it snowed last night in Houston, Santa hasn’t changed his schedule..but the Space Shuttle Endeavour will fly by the Johnson Space Center today between 11:45am to 12:45pm while mounted on a modified Boeing 747 Carrier Aircraft! The Endeavour will fly by and be visible from Ellington field and the Sonny Carter Training Facility before passing over JSC.

After landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Nov. 30, Endeavour is on its cross country journey back to the Kennedy Space Center.

Information about the Shuttle’s Ferry Flight will be available on the Shuttle’s main website at:

www.nasa.gov/shuttle

Image above: The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft carries Endeavour back to its home base at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Photo credit: NASA

Fifth graders from Fisher Elementary helped to launch the new Discount Tire School Bus Tram Tour at Space Center Houston Tuesday. The brand new tram decorated like a bright yellow school bus seats up to 100 and circles around the Saturn V-the most powerful rocket ever built! Did we mention its just for kids?! How cool is that? See the inaugural ride on the news above and come see it in person right now only at Space Center Houston! Remember you can get $5 off your admission tickets at www.spacecenter.org for a limited time!!