EP Native Danny Olivas Will Go Into Space Again

Native El Pasoan Danny Olivas will be among the flight crew aboard space shuttle Discovery’s next mission to the International Space Station. The launch is scheduled for Monday at 11:36 p.m. MDT, according to NASA.

Olivas is assigned to serve as mission specialist on Discovery’s STS-128 mission. According to NASA’s Web site, Discovery will carry a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module filled with science and storage racks to the station. The mission will include two spacewalks to remove and replace a materials processing experiment and will also exchange space station crew members.

Olivas made his first flight into space in June 2007 when he flew on the space shuttle Atlantis.He completed two spacewalks during the mission.

Olivas grew up in El Paso and graduated from Burges High School. He earned an engineering degree at UTEP before going on to earn a doctoral degree at Rice University.

The flight crew will also include Patrick Forrester, who was born in El Paso.