AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — One of UMass-Amherst’s most accomplished alumna is returning to campus to talk about her experiences in space.

Retired NASA astronaut Cady Coleman is scheduled to deliver the Commonwealth Honors College Kathryn and Paul Williamson Lecture on Wednesday.

Coleman’s free public talk, “Lessons from Space Lead Straight Back to Earth,” will use the background of her space missions to showcase valuable lessons that are essential to solving present and future challenges.

Coleman, a former U.S. Air Force colonel, has logged nearly 4,500 hours in space as a NASA astronaut. She is a veteran of two shuttle missions and participated in a six-month tour on the International Space Station.


Coleman earned a doctorate in polymer science and engineering from UMass and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.