25-05-09 First African-American To Lead NASA

President Barack Obama continues to make history after appointing the first African-American to lead the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).Obama has also picked only the second former astronaut in NASA history when he named retired Marine Corps Maj.Gen.Charles F Bolden,Jr.to lead the civilian agency.Bolden,graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1968,heading off to Vietnam as a naval aviator who flew sorties into North and South Vietnam,Laos,and Cambodia.In 1980,Bolden joined NASA as an astronaut,eventually going into space four times (STS-61C, STS-31, STS-45, STS-60) before retiring in 1994.Obama has also picked former Capital Space LLC President and campaign space policy adviser Lori Garver to serve as deputy administrator of NASA.Garver has already served at NASA,having worked for three years as associate administrator of the Office of Policy and Plans Photo