Space fears rekindled for father of astronaut

A call from an acquaintance prompted James Godwin to turn on his television Saturday morning.

It was then the rural Jackson resident saw video footage of space shuttle Columbia becoming a fireball across the Texas sky.

His thoughts immediately went to his daughter, Dr. Linda Godwin, a NASA astronaut who lives in Houston and was part of the ground crew for the Columbia mission. He's been on the ground at her NASA launchings and landings, praying for her safety.

"You think about it," he said. "You sure do. We're lucky, I guess. They all went OK."

But in the end, he said, there's nothing you can do but wait and deal with the stress.

James Godwin said his daughter, who turns 51 in July, likely won't go into space any more. "I am glad she's got her flights in," he said.

Linda Godwin graduated Jackson High School, Southeast Missouri State University and the University of Missouri, earning a doctorate in physics. She has taken four flights into space:

Atlantis (April 5-11, 1991): The crew deployed an observatory to study gamma ray sources in the universe.

Endeavour (April 9-20, 1994): Three large radar devices and a carbon monoxide sensor were used to enhance studies of the Earth's surface and atmosphere.

Atlantis (March 22-31, 1996): It was the third docking mission to the Russian space station Mir. Godwin performed a six-hour space walk.

Endeavour (Dec. 5-17, 2001): It was the 12th shuttle flight to the International Space Station. Godwin used the shuttle's robotic arm to install equipment and participated in a space walk.