Psycho Astronaut Lisa Nowak’s Love Rival Colleen Shipman - Exclusive Photo!
Written by J Napsterista on February 6th, 2007 in Florida, Trainwrecks, culture.
Your correspondent has obtained this photograph of Colleen Shipman, the (alleged) love rival of psychotic NASA astronaut LISA M. NOWAK.
Earlier today, the Houston Chronicle published reports (picked up by various other outlets, as here in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer) that NOWAK’s love rival was Colleen Shipman, a 2002 graduate of Penn State University who has worked at Cape Canaveral since 2005. The above photograph, dated February 2002, was obtained from Penn State University and appeared in a publication titled “Effectively Sorting Components Using Machine Vision.” Ms. Shipman was a member of the student team which submitted the publication.
Ms. Shipman’s college webpage (noting her service in the Air Force) can be found here.
The page’s full text is reproduced below for reference:
Colleen’s Home Page
Willkommen!
I’m the one in the shades, standing next to Ruth (my best friend),
who’s holding her son, Nicholas. Golden Gate Bridge. September 6, 2001.
——————————————————————————–
My Major: Chemical Engineering — BioProcess Engineering Focus
What a pain in the butt this major is! Tell you what…if I knew when I was a freshman what I know now, I’d have taken up Electrical Engineering. Who’d have guessed that when I graduate in May of this year, I will have learned enough chemistry to be dangerous. They should have called this major “Fluid-flow and Heat Transfer Engineering.” Honestly.
Well, thank heaven that I came through Penn State when Biotechnology is taking off, and a new option in the Chemical Engineering department opened up. Yep, I jetted into the new BioProcess Engineering Option faster than you could say “tray spacing.” The opportunities in the Biotechnology field abound and (thank all things holy) have little to do with distillation towers and smelly old refineries. I had the pleasure of working in the BioTechnology Pilot Plant at Penn State for an entire semester, growing E. coli and purifying protiens. Many companies are doing the same today…searching for the most efficient process for producing and purifying proteins that can do things from making beer glow, to signaling the brain to stop storing fat.
So, what does a BioProcess Engineer do?
Just look at all the options!
Be commissioned a 2nd Lt in the the Air Force & work as a Project Engineer (That’s what I’m doing!!)
Work for any pharmaceutical company, like Merck (R&D, sales, production)
Work in the food industry for Kraft , Hershey , etc. BASF — you know, make things better!!
Of course, you could always go to Grad School
Penn State will help with the job search
There are some professional societies for Chemical Engineers and Students of Chemical Engineering alike. The most popular one in America is:
American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE
Now is when I should mention that I’m also getting my degree in German this May.
——————————————————————————–
My 2nd Major: German
It’s called a “dual-degree” program. That’s fancy for “it’ll take you 7 years to graduate, fool.” The program’s available to any student in engineering wishing to add a language (and 3 years) to their studies. Still, joining this program was the best idea I ever had. Not only did I get to do a study abroad in sunny Kiel, Germany, but now I’ve got this language skill that I never dreamed I’d master. I’ll get extra “language-pay” in the Air Force and can market myself as bilingual to the 3 biggest chemical engineering companies in the world. (They are based in Germany!)
——————————————————————————–
Want to see my Resume?
This page was created by Colleen Shipman.
You can email me at: cms259@psu.edu
For comparison purposes, here is Lisa Nowak, photo via Seattle Post-Intelligencer, whom everyone has seen and laughed at by now. (Her poor children!):
~J Napsterista
Update - Dec 2007
Love Triangle Emails Released!
Nasa has released emails sent between former astronaut Lisa Nowak and the space shuttle pilot William Oefelein
Colleen Shipman in court, from AP
Lisa Nowak in court, from AP
The space agency released more than 200 pages of messages relating to the case in response to a public records request from the media. The messages covered a period from mid-2004 and January 2007, a month before Nowak’s arrest on charges she tried to abduct Shipman.
Colleen Shipman
A message from early 2007 that the pilot sent to Shipman reads, “Hey cutie” and signs off “Love you.” In writing about an upcoming trip, he says: “They want your size for the arctic gear…I think I can figure that out - sized sexy and athletic.” He adds a note about plans to get a hotel saying that “Due to noise requirements” he didn’t want to stay with his parents during a trip, as he usually does, because “we need some ‘privacy’!!!!”
Some of the later emails between Nowak and Oefelein have a friendlier tone. The two lived in the Houston area and trained together, but never flew on the same mission.
Colleen Shipman and William Oefelein
February 6th, 2007 at 10:35 pm
Lisa Nowak is a BAD girl Astronaut…
Here are the photos and story of astronaut Lisa Nowak and Colleen Shipman. Nowak went from heroic NASA space shuttle astronaut to complete tramp in just a few short years. Lisa Nowak is one of the very few women to travel into space, an elite group a…
February 6th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
It’s pretty easy to find…
http://web.archive.org/web/20050210033511/www.ecsel.psu.edu/~cms259/Report2/TitlePageR2.html
February 6th, 2007 at 11:40 pm
That is the hottest machine vision sorter I have ever seen!
February 7th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
“the one in the shades” photo that goes with the text above
February 7th, 2007 at 2:01 pm
http://www.ecsel.psu.edu/~cms259/EDGPage/3GoldenGate.jpg
February 9th, 2007 at 4:47 pm
YES, LET US ALL NOW SYMPATHIZE WITH THE PLIGHT OF “ASTRONAUT STRESS SYNDROME”!! Those poor astronauts - what a STRESSFUL existence they lead and how little do the rest of us understand the grueling life that is endured by such a misunderstood subculture of our society. They are scrutinized to the hilt and have little time for meeting their interpersonal relationship needs. What a hellish existence they must have. It is especially difficult for Lisa Nowak since she is persecuted by NASA - no time for her children or her emotional wants and needs. Who wouldn’t crack under the strain and torture of being denied ones’ most basic rights? I say that NASA and the government must start an astronaut awareness support group so that the general population at large can become sensitized to the hardship and cruelties that this subgroup minority is relegated to. How many of us “normals” really know what it is like to be subjected to the rigors of being an astronaut, especially female ones? It is high time and long overdue that we, as a society, must recognize this as drain on our resources and end the suffering that has persisted from one astronaut generation to the next.
February 9th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
Lisa was a classmate of mine at the academy and Grad school. If you only new her you wouel not be making such mean statements about her. Those that know her are hurt beyond belief. If she was your friend would you want such staements made.
February 13th, 2007 at 10:37 pm
Hey, we all are subjected to stressors of life…we pick our careers ourself, and know what is expected of us. No one has the right to go after someone to kill them just because they are not getting their way, and can’t have the person they want in this world. No one deserves to be sought after, and almost murdered. Colleen Shipman is a hard working , single woman who wasn’t hurting anybody, and i don’t care how stressed out Nowak was, she has no right to stalk someone with materials that can kill someone. Shipman was chased by a nut case, and almost killed because someone was jealous of her. Not an excuse to kill.And also just because someone has incredible credintials doesn’t mean they wont kill someone from a crime of passion. Nowak should do time for this. She nearly killed an innocent person because of jealousy. I cannot get over the fact that because Nowak was an Astronaut, that she is abouve the law. She isn’t. She needs to go to jail. She would have killed Colleen Shipman
February 23rd, 2007 at 4:07 pm
If this was a non-celebrity person she would still be in jail. She truly is mentally
damaged with proof being that she abandoned the precious lives of her children,
her family and her self and was prepared to live with the secret crime of murder
and vicious dismemberment. There is no and I mean no logical or sane reason to have
these items/weapons unless the target was meant to be killed and disposed
of to cover up the crime. Ms. Shipman would have turned her over to the police for
even the most basic threat so death was the only real solution for Nowak, and she
knew it and was fully prepared for it! Most certainly she needs psychiatric help and/or cell
bars in her future, why is she free to roam, sort of, while awaiting trial? Her
premeditated determination and preparation is very disturbing. As salt in her
wound her desired man is now bonded more than ever with her elusive prey.
March 1st, 2007 at 4:51 pm
I am very sad to learn about this whole spectacle. Lisa Nowak had so much going for her. Why would she throw it all away for a man? Instead of being a pillar of society, she is a shame to her profession. Her family, friends, husband, and herself.
March 1st, 2007 at 4:54 pm
Lisa Nowak is a disgrace to NASA. She’s a disgrace to her family, children, husband, friends, and to herself. Instead of being a role-model, especially to young women, she will certainly make it even more difficult for women to aspire to heights. Shame on her.
March 4th, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Lisa Nowak is an accomplished woman. She appears to be suffering from mental illness. Now is not the time to cause her further humiliation. She needs intensive inpatient for her condition.
March 6th, 2007 at 4:37 pm
I love Lisa. I think she’s a hottie
March 7th, 2007 at 1:09 am
I have a heaving aversion to people like Debra Wehrly who uses phrases like “pillar of society” as if anyone were capable of really being that, unless she thinks SHE is!…and “a disgrace…” and “spectacle” — these are ideals reminiscent of a Victorian era mindset that judges people based on appearances alone. Come on Debra, it’s 2007 now, hello! If it isn’t eminently obvious to EVERYONE that Lisa Nowak is indeed suffering from some sort of mental dissociation from reality, regardless of the source, then it’s a damned shame. Judgements are not for us mere mortals to make, Ms. Righteous. Compassion for ALL the people involved, including the three primary adults, and their entire families, is what is in order. Let’s restrain Lisa, ask Bill why he was seeing a married woman, comfort the kids and the ex-husband, and get everybody into counselling (give Debra Wehrly first appointment!)
March 7th, 2007 at 10:53 am
Can we imagine? It’s clear from what is emerging that Lisa didn’t believe that her relationship with the guy was over. She’d separated from her husband and thought that this ‘new man’ was the best thing on the planet. Even his new girlfriend, Colleen Shipman suspected that he was still ‘playing’ with the old gf. She questioned him regularly and he was assuring but still managed to call her Lisa on occasion (during intimate moments).
No, Lisa’s behavior was not exemplary…but her motives, while she was prepared for something heinous it seems, cannot be assumed. I suspect she went ‘prepared’ but mostly just desperate. She wanted to hold on to her belief that her man was wonderful, ‘the best’ as she said…but she also had begun to realize that she threw away her marriage of 19 years over a fellow that wasn’t so wonderful. Yet, to doubt him made her unworthy of him if she were wrong. Sure, most of us go through this at some point and obviously very few snap to the degree that Lisa did, but most of us do snap and many do something stupid in an effort to find the truth.
Lisa had been married 19 years, she likely believed this jerks bs. Afterall, he could have the best of both. He lived in Houston with a gf in Florida, so why not keep Lisa on the side? Sure, he obviously toyed with her (and in many ways is the no account villain here) but Lisa and Colleen bore the brunt.
Where is the line of Lisa’s responsibility versus the responsibility born by NASA and this wonderful guy (gee girls, anyone wanna line up to meet this guy now?) it’s not very clear to me. It’s clear that Colleen Shipman bears no responsibility and yet, now her life is trashed too. She can’t even go home! Forget what Lisa did or attempted to do, the real destruction of her life will be accomplished by the US society’s insatiable desire for dirt.
I hope Lisa gets some help. I suspect she already feels profound remorse and will pay an incredible price for her desperation. I am glad that Colleen didn’t suffer further at the hands of Lisa but also realize that no one can assume what Lisa would have done given the chance. I hope that NASA now realizes that they need to commit the same emphasis to caring for the emotional and mental health of their astronauts that they do to their physical wellbeing. It’s really inexplicable that they don’t. For the naysayers who think that it’s being ’soft’ or ‘extremely leftist’ to suggest that NASA has some responsibility in this regard, care to explain why it is standard procedure for soldiers and police officers to have to get regular evaluations? Especially when something particularly stressful occurs? Why are concepts like Post-Traumatic Stress even recognized if they don’t exist?
How stressful is it for someone to prepare and then go into space? Sure, it would be exciting and ‘fun’ but the pressure must be monumental when you consider that the number of qualified astronauts so greatly exceed the planned missions. Even once scaling the heights of becoming an astronaut, you still have to scramble to get past all the others that have. Excitement, and anxiety are very closely related and while these folks may choose that environment, it doesn’t mean that they don’t need a vacation from it every few years …or every decade, and there isn’t one.
March 7th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
I am glad that I never flipped out after an affair. I just go by the old saying that love lost is better than none at all.
March 7th, 2007 at 7:11 pm
Blah blah blah who cares if you knew her or not, the bottom line is she committed a crime, it doesn’t really matter why she did it…She DID it, and you can’t blame the stresses of a job SHE went to school for, SHE applied for, and SHE accepted for her actions. **For example** you can’t say someone who blows up buildings for their own personal gratification is “basically” a nice or good person because you knew them when they were younger, the bottom line is people who do bad things, or commit crimes will and should be punished. People will say bad things about them along with all the consequences of doing bad things, and you can’t show favoritism or sugar coat the situation, people who do bad things should only expect a bad outcome. I hope they all get help, God knows they need it.
March 7th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
I think Lisa is a great woman. I hope she will get over and will be forgiven. I feel sorry for her. Sometimes you need a shake up of this kind of a magnitude to open you eyes and realize he wasn’t worth it! What I gather is he didn’t care at all and I’m glad she knows by now he is not the kind of a guy to go to jail for.
March 7th, 2007 at 8:43 pm
One more thing: Lisa, let him go and let go, please read Gabriel Garcia Masques: it didn’t happen if it wasn’t meant to be. Something much better is awaiting you, believe me. Probably this incident saved you from something worse that might have happened in the future, e.g. you and your beau married lived happily and all of a sudden you find out the other woman is stil in the picture and god knows what could have happened afterwards……. could be worse.
March 8th, 2007 at 10:03 am
Poor lil Lisa was a victim of jerkitis, That guy was a big jerk, howeer it is Karma because she was a jerk to her hubby and kids,
March 9th, 2007 at 11:43 pm
I’m a woman who spent 2 tours of active duty in the Marine Corps (8+ years) trying to gain the respect of fellow Marines and trying to get past the fact that in their eyes I was a just a “W.M”. I find it completely disgusting that one woman can take away all the years of effort myself and countless other RESPECTABLE women in the military have spent striving for respect and equality. Lisa Nowak is a Disgrace to all Women, Military women, mom’s, the military as a whole; especially the Navy, our Country, Nasa and human-kind in general. Simply put, she’s disgusting and embarrassing. Thanks to her women will have to work even harder to get into NASA level opportunities in the future! At least she wasn’t a Marine; thank God for that!
THPI
March 10th, 2007 at 11:46 am
If Lisa were a man stalking Colleen Shipman with a buck knife, garbage bags, rubber tubing, a hammer, pepper spray and a realistic looking air gun, in a dark airport parking lot, he would be in jail. She wore a diaper to avoid any contact with witnesses on her way to Florida. She wore a disguise to conceal her activities. The thought she was just going to spray Shipman just to take over her vehicle and to talk to her is ludicrous. She has not lost control of her faculties, she is simply a calculating liar who has successfully used her short stature and wan appearance to appear less menacing than she actually was the night she stalked Shipman. Lisa drove 900 miles and had plenty of quiet time to think about what she was doing. Talk about premeditation. She had multiple weapons and the means to dispose of a body. If you take any substantial step toward murder such as procuring the weapon and/or stalking the victim, you have committed attempted murder. In the light of publicity and the pathetic appearance of a sad looking little middle-aged woman, the D.A. appears to have chickened out and went for the easy guilty on a kidnap. As to the friends of Lisa who know her well, so sorry but some of us do not share in your confidence of how well you actually knew her. Did you think she was capable of a long-term adulterous relationship? Is that behavior also excused on the basis of a supposed mental illness or just meeting a very bad man who led poor astronaut Lisa astray? Or did she lead him astray? His friends think he is salt of the earth too. How about her activites in Orlando? Could it be that Lisa has a clear mind but a dark heart that you never knew about? Her plan and the statements she made afterwards would indicate a clarity of thought and motive. Her remorse was for getting caught– not for her husband, her children or her victim. If she does something like this again to Shipman or to someone else, then once again, will her friends cluck that it can only be mental illness. Give her some credit: she was an astronaut. There will be the usual psych reports back and forth but the fact remains, she is a menace to society. Let her pay her debt in prison and save her children from being raised by such a dangerous mother and the rest of us from having such a creep running amok.
March 11th, 2007 at 7:45 pm
OK, she was way over the edge, no doubt about it, scarily-so, but this is yet another case of a man not being held responsible for his behavior. It’s like when a guy cheats on his wife and she gets mad at the other woman. Is it the other woman or is it the man? Why does the man walk away scot-free, never being held accountable for his behavior, as if these women just got these ideas magically placed in their heads? If a guy is above board he will be open and honest about the way he feels, if he wants to feather his nest he’ll string them along, then act shocked that they ever expected anything of him, make the WOMAN look bad. It’s called immaturity. How come there were no reporters sitting outside HIS house? Just the crazy women’s houses, fighting over an innocent man… Puh-lease.
BTW, how did she get those emails in the first place?
March 11th, 2007 at 7:57 pm
Ah never mind, just read an article which answered all of those questions. They were romantically involved for 2-3 years and he dumped her after she’d started divorce proceedings to go out with someone else. The eternal bachelor. So basically he took all he could get, ruined her life, then went after someone else, leaving her in middle age to raise her kids on her own. Yeah, great guy.
Again, she’s unstable and that was not the correct response, but if you want to know why she snapped, that would be it.
March 15th, 2007 at 6:49 pm
I’m sure this will become a Lifetime Movie. I agree with what Dee L. said.
March 21st, 2007 at 7:13 pm
Colleen, dump this chump. He cheated on his wife for years with Lisa. He cheated on Lisa with you. And no doubt he will eventually cheat on you with some other unsuspecting woman. You are better off with the local mailman or a store manager that is faithful and not a player like this astronaut is. I have seen men like this and believe me, they are easy to love, easy on the eyes and know exactly what to say to make a woman feel special. That is, until the day some other woman catches his eye and you will feel exactly as down as Lisa Nowak.
I do not agree with what Lisa did to you, girl….but she needs help. Like Bill she does not really know what she wants and ditched her man to be with this clown as Bill ditched his wife to be with Lisa. My sis lives in Clear Lake and tells me that a good number of the astronauts single or not fool around shamelessly and prey on basically good women like you.
Take my advice…you can do better. Dump the chump.
Cris Eagle
March 22nd, 2007 at 12:27 am
We are nobody to judge anybody. We are all exposed to anything at anytime. We are powerless human beings controlled by external forces. I believe that this is the usual “triangle” relationship, and when there is more than two in a couple its trouble. It is best to pray for all of them specially the children and hope that God places the pieces where they belong so this terrible situation settles without anymore pain and hurt to all involved.
March 22nd, 2007 at 6:29 pm
To conclude that one person’s action is a set-back for all women all over is just plain stupid and ignorant. It’s like saying equality for both sexes yet when it comes to do the dirty jobs, then suddenly, forget that. Obviously she is disturbed and needed help. Obviously there’s three sides to a story. The only one that’s getting exploited is hers. So, let’s hide those knives of judgement and let it unfold.
March 25th, 2007 at 2:00 pm
Guilty, but insane.
Just heard - please someone tell me that I am WRONG that this woman (and I agree if she had been a man or an “unknown” woman, she would be in jail - (no bond) until trial) is now working in another area for NASA.
Now, why isn’t she in treatment somewhere?
Surely, the folks at NASA are smarter than this!?!
I do agree that treatment is the best course, but she needs to serve time for this crime as well. Hopefully, one day she can be returned to society, but NOT NOW!
I am afraid for her children, her co-workers, and for her.
Also, if she is going to claim “temporary insanity,” and then goes back to work INSTEAD of immediate treatment, then how much credibility is this “defense?”
Thoughts, please…???
June 23rd, 2007 at 6:57 pm
Nowak cheated on her husband(with Oefelein) for several years. Trysts
and deception took hours away from her children & husband. She cared nothing for Oefelins’ wife & childrens anguish. She is a liar and an adultress with no conscience. Oefelein is a player. His charm must be his status as an astronaut, certainly can not be his looks. He is goofy looking. Status: Also a cheat and a liar. Sorry for them? No way! Turn your sympathy to the mates and children of these two!
August 6th, 2007 at 2:32 pm
The US legal system is screwed. Don’t put people away without proof, and then brag about it.
December 14th, 2007 at 2:47 pm
A bunch of righteous indignation over some woman you all don’t know? Thanks for reminding me why I hate the Internet unless there’s lulz to be had. “How dare she, and how dare you for defending her?!” = anti-lulz
Dammit, I want moar image macros of the Crazy Astronaut Lady, and Encyclopedia Dramatica and 4chan are out of them!
June 21st, 2008 at 10:37 am
God she’s ugly. I wouldn’t touch her with Lothar’s diarrea-laced man-package. I could only fuck her if I’d had like a 5th of vodka and about 80 GBH tabs! FUUUUUUGLY!