Janice Voss papers, 1962-2007 | Purdue University Libraries, Archives and Special Collections

By Stephanie Schmitz

Printer-friendly |

Collection Overview

Title: Janice Voss papers, 1962-2007

Predominant Dates:1990-1997

Primary Creator: Janice Voss (1956 - 2012)

Extent: 6.0 Cubic feet

Arrangement:

Arranged into 5 Series:

1. Youth, 1962-1986 (2 folders). 2. Education, circa 1977-1982 (.5 cubic feet). 3. Professional Career, 1975-2007 (.5 cubic feet). 4. Multimedia, 1993-circa 1995 (1 cubic foot). 5. Oversize Materials, 1962-2000 (2 cubic feet).

Date Acquired: 08/01/2008. More info below under Accruals.

Subjects: Aeronautics, Aerospace engineering, Astronauts, Flight Archives at Purdue University, National Aeronautic Association (U.S.), Purdue University--Alumni and alumnae, Purdue University--Students, Space flights, Space shuttles--United States, Women's Archives at Purdue University, Women college athletes

Forms of Material: Awards, Black-and-white photographs, Clippings (Information artifacts), Correspondence, Ephemera, Pamphlets, Scrapbooks

Languages: English

Scope and Contents of the Materials

The Janice Voss papers (1962-2004) document the early years and career highlights of astronaut Janice Voss. The collection includes materials from Voss’ childhood, including elementary school class pictures and report cards as well as materials from her time as an astronaut. Items pertaining to her professional career consist primarily of materials created and collected by her parents to celebrate her participation in space shuttle missions during the period of 1993-2000, and also includes audio visual materials such as “flight day highlights” from her STS-63 mission as well as assorted videotaped interviews. Additionally, the collection contains a number of honors and awards presented to Voss by community organizations. The papers are organized into five series.

Collection Historical Note

Dr. Janice Voss was born on October 8, 1956 to James and Louise Voss in South Bend, Indiana. Voss attended Minnechaug Regional High School in Wilbraham, Massachusetts and graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Science in 1975. She then earned a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, and a Doctorate in Aeronautics/Astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1977 and 1987, respectively. Having worked on computer simulations and as a crew trainer at the NASA Johnson Space Center during her graduate studies, Voss took a position at the Orbital Sciences Corporation upon completing her doctorate, where she was involved with mission integration and flight operations. In January 1990, Voss was selected by NASA to become an astronaut, and qualified as a mission specialist in July 1991. She flew on five space flights from 1993 until 2000, including the STS-57, STS-63, STS-83, STS-94 and STS-99, having logged a total of 49 days and 18.8 million miles in space. From 2004 to 2007, Voss was the Science Director for the Kepler spacecraft at the NASA Ames Research Center. Most recently, she served as Payloads Lead of the Astronaut Office Station Branch. Janice Voss died of breast cancer in February of 2012.

Source(s):

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Biographical Data Sheets, Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, 1997.

Welch, Rosanne. Encyclopedia of Women in Aviation and Space. Santa Barbara, Ca: ABC- CLIO, 1998.

Subject/Index Terms

Aeronautics
Aerospace engineering
Astronauts
Flight Archives at Purdue University
National Aeronautic Association (U.S.)
Purdue University--Alumni and alumnae
Purdue University--Students
Space flights
Space shuttles--United States
Women's Archives at Purdue University
Women college athletes

Administrative Information

Repository: Purdue University Libraries, Archives and Special Collections

Accruals:

20090211

20090507

20090519

20091028

20101217

Access Restrictions: Collection is open for research. 24 hours notice is required to access the collection.

Acquisition Method: A majority of the collection was donated by James and Louise Voss in February and May of 2009. The oversized aerial photograph of the Hexion chemical facility was donated by Janice Voss in August 2008. The Purdue pennant flown aboard the United States Space Shuttle Endeavor with Voss was donated in August, 2009 by the Purdue Office of the Vice President for University Relations. The Purdue banner with Voss' photograph on it was donated by Betty Nelson in 2010.

Related Materials:

Neil Armstrong papers Roy Bridges, Jr. papers

Donald E. Williams papers, 1978-1990

“Purdue’s Place in Space: From the Midwest to the Moon,” online exhibit that chronicles Purdue University’s role in aviation history and space exploration: http://www.lib.purdue.edu/moon/

For more information please see http://www.lib.purdue.edu/moon.

Preferred Citation: MSA 9, Janice Voss Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Purdue University Libraries

Processing Information: Materials have been re-housed into acid free folders and boxes, and into polyester sleeves when appropriate. Newsprint and clippings have been photocopied onto acid-free paper and the originals have been preserved for display purposes. In an attempt to retain their intrinsic value, the contents of the scrapbooks have not undergone preservation treatment. Artifacts have been separated and grouped together in a separate series for preservation and storage purposes. Materials continue to be received for this collection, and archival processing is ongoing.

Finding Aid Revision History: Revised by Stephanie Schmitz, June 2011

Other URL: http://collections.lib.purdue.edu/fa/pdf/voss_j.pdf

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Series:

[Series 1: Youth, 1962 - 1983],
[Series 2: Education, circa 1977 - 1982],
[Series 3: Professional Career, 1975 - 2007],
[Series 4: Multimedia, 1993 - circa 1995],
[Series 5: Oversize Materials, 1962 - 2000],
[All]

Series 1: Youth, 1962 - 1983

This series contains materials that document the childhood of Janice Voss, particularly her time as an elementary school student. Included is a journal, kept presumably by Janice’s grandmother, which records Voss’s activities from June 18, 1962 to July 21, 1962 and contains several black and white photographs. Also included in this series are class pictures, report cards, certificates, a report written for her fifth grade health class, and six photographs of Voss ranging from the age of eight to twenty-seven. Materials are arranged chronologically by format.

Box 1: Materials pertaining to the youth, education, and professional career of Voss.

Folder 1: Youth, 1962

Journal with black and white photographs documenting Voss's activities during the summer of 1962.

Folder 2: Youth, 1963 - 1983

Item 1: Photographs, 1963 - 1983
Item 2: Winnebago County Public Schools Perfect Attendance Award, 1966
Item 3: Guilford Center School, Report to Parents, 1963 - 1964
Item 4: Guilford Center School, Report to Parents, 1964 - 1965
Item 5: Guilford Center School, Report to Parents, 1965 - 1966
Item 6: Iowa Test of Basic Skills, undated
Item 7: Third Grade Class Photograph, 1963 - 1964
Item 8: Fourth Grade Class Photograph, 1964 - 1965
Item 9: Fifth Grade Class Photograph, 1965 - 1966
Item 10: Clipping: Photograph of Girl Scouts of Guilford Center School, Troop 337, East Rider, 1965
Item 11: Report: "Human Body", circa 1965
Item 12: Illinois 4-H Members Record Book and Certificate of Achievement, 1966

Series 2: Education, circa 1977 - 1982

This series contains Voss' master's thesis, which was completed at the Massachusettes Instistute of Technology, and graded coursework and exams, likely from her time as a graduate student.

Box 1: Materials pertaining to the youth, education, and professional career of Voss.

Folder 3: Master's Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1977: Optimization of Variable Mixture Ratio Rocket Boosters
Folder 4: Compilation of graded coursework and exams, circa 1978 - 1982

Series 3: Professional Career, 1975 - 2007

This series contains materials which highlight Voss' professional career, particularly her space shuttle missions during the period of 1993 - 2000. Included in this series are clippings, photographs, programs, NASA publications, her Kennedy Space Center badge, email correspondence sent to her parents in 2004, and other ephemeral materials relating to different space shuttle missions, some of which have been compiled into three scrapbooks. Materials are arranged by format and, when appropriate, by mission.

Box 1: Materials pertaining to the youth, education, and professional career of Voss

Folder 5: Clippings, 1975 - 2007

Item 1: "Women Engineers: The 'New' Trailblazers," Purdue University Perspective, 1975
Item 2: "Astronaut Speaks about Experiences," Spokesman, October 29, 1993
Item 3: "Astronauts from WMass Faced Risks," Sunday Republican, February 2, 2003
Item 4: "Around the World in 90 Minutes: Astronaut Lands Close to Home to Talk about Space," The Courier News, July 10, 2007
Item 5: Crossword puzzle, undated: 26 down: "Astronaut Voss"

Folder 6: Correspondence, 2004

Item 1: Email to Jim and Louise Voss, February 27, 2004

Folder 7: Photographs, circa 1993 - 1995

Item 1: Eight color photographs pertaining to the STS-63 and STS-57 missions

Folder 8: STS-57 Mission, 1993

Item 1: Postcard with information about STS-57 launch date, 1993
Item 2: STS Mission Profiles Booklet, 1993
Item 3: Sample RSVP postcard, undated
Item 4: STS-57 Mission Information (one page), undated
Item 5: Letter regarding Janice Voss' participation in the annual Madison Regatta Parade, 1993
Item 6: Memos to family and friends concerning the STS-57 mission launch: Includes information about accommodations, schedule of activities, maps, guest list, etc.
Item 7: Jefferson County Monthly, 1995: Signed by Janice Voss, who is featured on the cover

Folder 9: STS-83 Mission, 1997

Item 1: Invitation card to the STS-83 launch, 1997
Item 2: STS-83 first day cover
Item 3: NASA fact sheet on STS-83
Item 4: Information sheet on the Columbia (OV-102) Space Shuttle orbiter
Item 5: Letters of invitation and memos regarding planning and arangements for the STS-83 launch, 1997
Item 6: STS-83 timeline
Item 7: NASA press kit, Space Shuttle Mission STS-83

Folder 10: STS-94 Mission, 1997

Item 1: STS-94 Family Itinerary, June 24, 1997

Folder 11: Miscellaneous Items, undated

Item 1: Athena 2000 awards ceremony program
Item 2: NASA brochure on the Microgravity Science Laboratory

Folder 12: Astronaut Badge, Kennedy Space Center Restricted Access Area, circa 2000

Box 2: Scrapbooks, 1989 - 2000

Item 1: STS-57 Scrapbook, 1989 - 1990: Contains nespaper clippings, correspondence from family friends to James and Louis Voss, photographs from STS-57 launch, and documents pertaining to the selection of Janice Voss as an astronaut candidate.
Item 2: Scrapbook, 1990: Newspaper clippings pertaining to Janice Voss and the STS-57 Mission
Item 3: Scrapbook, 1993 - 2000: Photographs, guest lists, signed photographs and other ephemera commemorating the STS-99, STS-94, STS-83, STS-63 and STS-99 missions

Series 4: Multimedia, 1993 - circa 1995

This series contains VHS tapes of flight day highlights and interviews for the various space shuttle missions in which Voss participated. For preservation and access purposes, the tapes have been reformatted to DVD.

Box 6: VHS tapes containing flight day highlights and other footage such as interviews, circa 1991 - 1993

Item 1: "Mission Highlights, STS-57"
Item 2: "Janice, STS-57, NASA"
Item 3: "Central High School, Springfield, MA, 12/3/1991"
Item 4: "TV interviews, 7/1990, Ch 23. Ch 13 Rockford"
Item 5: "Janice, Rockford, June 1991, four interviews"
Item 6: "Janice Voss: Woman Astronaut, 1 hour, March 27, 1992": [Note: There is some slight distortion in this VHS tape.]

Box 7: VHS tapes containing flight day highlights, circa 1995

Item 1: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 1"
Item 2: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 2"
Item 3: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 3"
Item 4: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 4"
Item 5: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 5"
Item 6: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 6"
Item 7: "STS-63 Flight Day Highlights, Day 7"
Item 8: "STS-63, Highlights 1-7, NASA Tape"

Box 8: DVDs (reformatted VHS tapes and additional footage of Voss) and CDs

Item 1: Reformatted copies of VHS tapes: (19 DVDs)
Item 2: "Janice Voss Flight Videos"
Item 3: "CNN Broadcast"
Item 4: "Miraikan", February 2, 2008: (images)
Item 5: "Tsukaba photos from RT"
Item 6: NASA Space Center Highlights: (Video; 47 minutes)

Series 5: Oversize Materials, 1962 - 2000

This series includes artifactual materials such as various awards from community organizations, a Purdue pennant flown aboard the United States Space Shuttle Endeavor, a framed photograph of Voss taken in 1962, and a large Purdue banner picturing Voss. The materials are stored in three large oversize boxes.

Box 3 OVS: Framed Items, circa 1993

Item 1: "Field of Honor Award", undated
Item 2: Framed mirror: Carey Hill Girls Club, 1993

Box 4 OVS: Artifacts, 1962 - 2000

Item 1: Framed childhood photograph, circa 1962
Item 2: Purdue pennant flown aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavor, 2000
Item 3: Pewter mug, 1991: Engraved, "Talcott Mountain Space Center
Item 4: Athena Chapter Honors Award for being a Twenty-First Century Woman, 2000
Item 5: NASA Kennedy Space Center Area Permit and Restricted Access Badge, circa 1991

Box 5 OVS: Banner

Item 1: Large Purdue banner picturing Janet Voss in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the mission. Acquired by Betty Nelson through a Purdue Marketing and Media online auction held on 10/31/2010.