Ten months after the disaster, Anderson's rise — from Air Force brat to one of a few African-American astronauts — is no secret.

Spokane officials have renamed a road, an elementary school and a high-school science wing for Anderson, and a scholarship was created in his name by the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

City officials are working on a Michael Anderson park and a permanent memorial. They rejected an effort earlier this year to rename a small park, saying a tiny playground behind a strip mall doesn't befit Anderson's memory.

Anderson's alma mater, the University of Washington, is planning to roll out an endowed engineering scholarship in his name to help a minority student eager to follow the astronaut's lead.

— Jonathan Martin