CinemaNow - The New Explorers - Endeavour

When Mae Jemison was growing up in Chicago, all of the astronauts in NASA's space program were white males. "Endeavour" (the name of Dr. Jemison's space ship) is the story of a young African-American girl who made her dream of becoming an astronaut come true. This program follows Dr. Jemison, the very first African-American woman to go into space, as she prepares for the Endeavour mission in the fall of 1992. Host Bill Kurtis explores her remarkable background: a dual degree in Chemical Engineering/Afro-American Studies from Stanford University, an M.D. from Cornell, service with the Peace Corps, her own medical practice...and an application to NASA's astronaut program. Dr. Jemison was a payload specialist on the Endeavour, NASA's mission test for astronauts to someday live in space. Bill Kurtis speaks with her before, during and after the mission, as well as with the scientists on the ground. We watch her in space as she conducts a variety of experiments in life sciences, including one in which the role of gravity on a developing frog embryo is examined. The experiments performed on the Endeavour will bring us one step closer to a life in space. This program also follows Mae Jemison on an emotional visit back home to Chicago, where she speaks to an enthusiastic crowd of 8,000 admiring students from scores of Chicago Public Elementary and High Schools including her own alma mater, Morgan Park High.