Rep. Gabby Giffords Shot
Congresswoman, Gabby Giffords, of the 8th District of Arizona was shot this morning at a Safeway in Tucson, AZ. She was hosting an event “Congress on your Corner,” which was advertised on her congressional website.
Six people are dead and 12 others are wounded including the Arizona based staff of Rep. Giffords.
Giffords was shot through the head. Doctors at University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona are optimistic about a recovery.
President Obama, Speaker of the House John Boehner, and Sara Palin have commented on the tragedy. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden has also released a statement,
“We at NASA are deeply shocked and saddened by the senseless shooting of Representative Giffords and others at Saturday’s public event in Tucson. As a long-time supporter of NASA, Representative Giffords not only has made lasting contributions to our country, but is a strong advocate for the nation’s space program and a member of the NASA family. She also is a personal friend with whom I have had the great honor of working. We at NASA mourn this tragedy and our thoughts and prayers go out to Congresswoman Giffords, her husband Mark Kelly, their family, and the families and friends of all who perished or were injured in this terrible tragedy.”
Tucson, Arizona is a hub for astronomy research. Alan Boyle, blogger at Cosmic Blog, has written an article on Rep .Gifford’s impact on science and astronomy. The University of Arizona in Tucson is home to the Steward Observatory which has access to a wide range observational capabilities including the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT), Magellan, MMT, 90″, 61″, 60″, & 1.8m VATT telescopes. Additionally, the 12m radio telescope on Kitt Peak and the 10m Heinrich Hertz Submillimeter Telescope on Mt. Graham are available for use by the scientists and students of the Observatory.
The 217th AAS Meeting in Seattle is just beginning. Many registered participants are from the University of Arizona and/or Steward Observatory.
We will be following the recovery of Rep. Giffords. Our hearts go out to her husband, NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, and family.
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Rep. Giffords also spoke on the floor about the International Year of Astronomy, when she introduced a resolution about it back in 2008:
http://blog.aas.org/2008/07/08/iya-house-resolution/