Edward Campion
Headquarters, Washington, DC            June 28, 1996
(Phone:  202/358-1778)

Eileen Hawley
Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX
(Phone:  713/483-5111)

RELEASE:  96-124

SEGA LEAVES ASTRONAUT CORPS

     Astronaut Ronald M. Sega, Ph.D, will leave NASA on July 
1 to rejoin the faculty at the University of Colorado at 
Colorado Springs.

     Sega was selected as an astronaut in 1990, making his 
first Shuttle flight in 1994 aboard the Space Shuttle 
Discovery.  From November 1994 to March 1995, Sega served as 
NASA's Director of Operations, Russia, responsible for 
managing NASA activities supporting astronaut and cosmonaut 
training for flight on the Russian Mir space station.  His 
second Shuttle flight was in 1996 as payload commander for 
the third Shuttle/Mir docking mission aboard Atlantis.

     "We are sorry to see Ron leave," said David C. Leestma, 
Director of Flight Crew Operations.  "His knowledge, hard 
work and dedication will be missed."

     Sega had been on an extended leave of absence from the 
University.  He returns as Dean of the College of Engineering 
and Applied Science.

     For complete biographical information on Sega or other 
astronauts, see the NASA Internet biography home page at URL:  
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/

                    -end-