2 Doctors on Glenn Flight: ‘Coincidence’

Two doctors will accompany Sen. John Glenn (D-Ohio), NASA’s newest and oldest astronaut, into space in October.

One of them is a heart surgeon. The other is trained in emergency medicine.

“No, no, no,” NASA spokeswoman Jennifer McCarter said when asked if the doctors were assigned for the benefit of Glenn, who will be 77 at the time of the space shuttle flight. “It’s coincidence.”

NASA announced last month that Glenn, who became the first American in orbit 36 years ago, would return to space aboard Discovery as part of a study on aging.

The space agency on Friday named the six astronauts who will be launched with him on Oct. 29. Five of the six are space veterans, including both doctors: Japanese astronaut Chiaki Mukai, the heart surgeon; and NASA astronaut Scott Parazynski, who completed a 22-month residency in emergency medicine in the early 1990s.

Rounding out the crew are commander Curtis Brown Jr., pilot Steven Lindsey, mechanical engineer Stephen Robinson and Spanish astronaut-engineer Pedro Duque.

During the 10-day mission, the astronauts will release a sun-watching satellite that failed to provide any data during a botched flight late last year. The satellite never received a crucial computer command before it was released from Columbia; two spacewalking astronauts had to go out and capture it.