More U.S Astronauts Are Moving On

Can you blame them? They are relegated to hitchhiking with the Russians.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - NASA's mighty astronaut corps has become a shadow of what it once was. And it's only going to get smaller. 

It's down to 60 from an all-time high of 149 just a decade ago, with more departures coming once Atlantis returns this week from the very last space shuttle voyage.

With no replacement on the horizon for the shuttle, astronauts are bailing fast, even though the International Space Station will need crews for at least another decade.

The commander of Discovery's last flight back in March, Steven Lindsey? Gone to a company whose proposed commercial spacecraft resembles a mini-shuttle; his last day at NASA was Friday.

The skipper of Endeavour's last mission in May, Mark Kelly? Retiring in another few months to write a memoir with his wounded congresswoman wife, Gabrielle Giffords.
 
The captain of Atlantis, Christopher Ferguson, assured The Associated Press from orbit late last week that he'll be sticking around after this final shuttle journey of them all. At least one of his crew, though, isn't so sure.
After spending her childhood wanting to be an astronaut—and achieving that goal in 1996—Atlantis astronaut Sandra Magnus now has to figure out what the next chapter holds.