Mark Kelly has been with his wife, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, for every step of her month-long recovery. She was nearly killed when she was shot in the head during a rampage in front of a Tucson grocery store on Jan. 8. His devotion will force him to make a difficult choice -- stay with her, or resume training for the last flight of the space shuttle Endeavour, possibly his last chance ever to fly in space.
"Ideally I would like to have that conversation with Gabby," Kelly told ABC News' Diane Sawyer last month. "I've flown in space three times. I don't have to do it again. My number-one goal is to make sure that my crew is safe and that they can execute this mission safely. And that it's successful."
Dr. John Holcomb, the trauma surgeon heading Giffords team at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, is confident Kelly will make the right decision for his family. " I think that there's a certain amount of settling into a routine that happens once you're out of the ICU and I think Captain Kelly will get into a routine that he's comfortable with, that his wife's comfortable with, and that's obviously a very person decision".
NASA, at Kelly's request, appointed a backup commander to train with the STS-134 crew. Rick Sturckow, a retired Marine Colonel, has flown four missions into space, and could fly in Kelly's place if needed.
Sturckow flew the first mission to start construction of the International Space Station in 1998. It happened to be on Endeavour. His career will come full circle if he commands Endeavour on STS-134, its final flight to the International Space Station.
Sturckow is a reluctant replacement who has shied away from publicity while Mark Kelly makes his decision. He defined the role of a space shuttle commander in an interview with ABC News before his last flight in 2009. "My job is to make sure everything is done safely and successfully, though it is similar to being in charge of any crew in a shop," Sturckow said. "I was in charge of a pit crew on a racing organization, I worked a gas station, I had the crew of guys who worked in the shop there, so this is a similar kind of job. If somebody gets hurt or something doesn't go well, it is going to be my responsibility"
Source : http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/astronaut-mark-kelly-makes-decision-leave-gabby-giffords/story?id=12837023
