Space Station Astronaut’s Mother Dies

HOUSTON – NASA was reassigning the duties of an astronaut aboard the international space station as he grieved for his mother, who was killed when a train struck her vehicle.

Rose Tani, the 90-year-old mother of astronaut Daniel Tani, died Wednesday in the Chicago suburb of Lombard.

Daniel Tani, 46, is believed to be the first American astronaut to lose a close family member while in space, NASA spokeswoman Nicole Cloutier said. A NASA flight surgeon at Mission Control used a private radio line to inform Tani of his mother’s death and offer help.

Police said Rose Tani stopped behind a school bus at a railroad crossing and then drove around the vehicle, bypassing the lowered crossing gate. The train struck Tani’s vehicle on the passenger side and pushed it down the tracks before stopping.

Paramedics took Rose Tani to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

"He is obviously pretty sad," the astronaut’s brother, Richard Tani, said in Thursday’s edition of the Chicago Sun-Times. "He was pretty close to her. We are all close to her. She was loved by everyone."

Daniel Tani was supposed to fly home aboard Atlantis on Wednesday, but the shuttle’s flight was postponed until January due to a fuel gauge problem. The earliest he could return to Earth at this point is late next month.

"Before anyone launches, they understand that unfortunate things could happen and that’s unfortunately part of the difficulties, hardships and risks of space flight," NASA spokesman Jim Rostohar said in Thursday’s edition of the Chicago Tribune.

NASA spokeswoman Eileen Hawley told the Houston Chronicle that Tani’s duties will be postponed or handled by his crewmates, station commander Peggy Whitson and cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko.

"Something like this is always very personal, so it will depend on his wishes," Hawley said.