Missouri’s newest space traveler is back on the ground after two weeks aloft. Astronaut Bob Behnken, a native of St. Ann, was on space walks installing a new room for the space station.
Unless he’s assigned to a long-term mission on the International Space Station, this was probably Behnken’s last trip into space. But he wouldn’t turn down a chance to be on the space station for an extended mission. “I think that all the astronauts are interested in spending time in space…As we go forward finding things that really do benefit the future of exploration or the future of the space program are really important to all of us,” he says.
Behnken’s father was in the construction industry and let his son work to work-sites with him in the St. Ann area. Behnken says his experience working on construction sites gave him the mechanical aptitude he has needed to do his job adding equipment to the space station.
 Listen to brief interview with Bob Behnken 5:35 mp3
