Update: Sandra Prow has informed me that a scholarship has been set up by Ron’s family in his name. Information is at the bottom of the ARRL web page.
CollectSpace is reporting that Ron Parise, Shuttle astronaut and astronomer, has died at the age of 56.
Damnation.
He flew twice; both times as a Payload Specialist for the two UV Astro missions.
But I knew Ron. He worked across the hall from me at Goddard Space Flight Center. I really liked him; as busy as he always was he still took the time to answer a dumb question or two from me about Shuttle flight. He also did a great debunking of the claims that Shuttle videos from STS 48 showed UFOs; he showed conclusively that these were ice particles outside the window being affected by the vernier jets from the Shuttle.
Damnation.
May 12th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
Rest in peace, Rocket Man.
May 12th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
News of the death of a relatively young person is always painful; it is even more painful when the person has been a worthwhile contributor to society: artistically, in the sciences, or in a humanitarian way. And to die because of cancer, a disease which has ravaged humans for so long, the mysteries of which now seem close to being solved by medical science, surely adds to the pain. May his wife and children find solace in the memory of their husband and father; may his friends cherish his memory.
May 12th, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Aw, Phil, I’m sorry to hear this news. It’s never easy to find out a friend has passed. And Ron still had so much left to contribute. It sounds like he was a really great guy. The human race is lucky to have had him as a member for the 56 short years he was here.
May 12th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Ron was an all around Good Guy. Nobody had to be nice to us needle-wielding ‘vampires’ (and believe me, there were some who were very un-nice). Nobody had to take the time to tell us neat stuff. But Ron did. He’s one of the first astronauts I ever met, and a great mind, always very kind, and always wanting everyone around to learn more.
May 12th, 2008 at 7:41 pm
I’m really sorry hear this.
This kind of reminds me of the Cosmic Variance post about John Wheeler: http://cosmicvariance.com/2008/04/13/goodbye
May 12th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
WOW, My Father just Turned 59, But his Father Barely Lived to be 54 …
Still, It Flat out Sucks to Lose a Friend Phil; One of Mine Died Recently, Too, And he was Only 29 …
So, do you think his Space Exposure, had Anything to do with his Cancer?
>:D<
May 12th, 2008 at 11:44 pm
Sorry to hear. Sad to lose another great smart human being.
May 13th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
I was privileged to know Ron, too. We both worked for CSC, and friends through another Youngstown Ohio person. He was a great guy. Loved the latest gadgets; he had GPS long before the rest of us. Very down to earth, for an astronaut. He will be missed.
May 13th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Doug, I forgot about his gadgets! You could always see his car across the GSFC parking lot; it was festooned with antennas. It looked like he could pick up Mars on that stuff.
June 2nd, 2009 at 7:00 am
[...] swore up and down that these particles were spaceships. The astronaut — my friend the late Ron Parise — showed that the "UFOs" also seemed to change directions right after the vernier [...]