Obama-Appointed NASA Administrator Charles Bolden Decides Houston Doesn't Get Retired Space Shuttle

Back in April, Obama-appointed NASA Administrator Charles Bolden announced that Houston would not receive one of the four retiring space shuttle orbiters. Despite Houston's legacy and prominent role in human space flight, the orbiters ended up going to New York, Florida, Washington D.C. and California.

Today, NASA Inspector General Paul K. Martin released a report examining NASA's process for choosing the locations for the retired orbiters.

Originally, the Recommendation Team suggested the Atlantis be placed at Space Center Houston, but according to the Houston Chronicle,

"Following the presentation, Bolden told the Team that he did not believe a location’s connection to the Space Shuttle Program or to NASA generally should be a consideration in deciding where to place the Orbiters. Rather, it was Bolden’s preference that the Agency choose locations where the Orbiters would be seen by the largest number of visitors and thus serve NASA’s goal of expanding outreach and education efforts to spur interest in science, technology, and space exploration."

Read the entire report here.