| The 2003 mission patch was designed on the computer from a combination of submissions from the CHASA members. The slogan on the patch comes from the original CHASA slogan "Into the Future". By saying "The Future is Here", we recognize that the world is changing so fast, one cannot think of technological advances and events as going to happen some time in the future, but as happening everyday. With the human genome project coming to a close and the exciting world of bioinformatics and robotic technology growing exponentially everyday - it is hard to imagine any science fiction movie as more "futureistic". The ten stars on the patch have a double meaning. Firstly, each star represents one decade since the Wright Brothers took their first flight in 1903. The large star in the center represents the 110th decade of flight, which we are now entering with the ISS and a "permanent" colony in space. Secondly, the ten stars also represent the combination of one external tank, two solid rocket boosters, three space shuttle main engines and the four working orbiters - the Columbia, the Atlantis, the Discovery and the Endeavour. STS II signifies this as the second CHASA shuttle mission. |
