Greet noted physicist Stephen Hawking at the Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility after a zero gravity flight.

Well-wishers greet noted physicist Stephen Hawking (in the wheelchair) at the Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility after a zero gravity flight. Next to him at left are Peter Diamandis, founder of the Zero Gravity Corp. that provided the flight aboard its modified Boeing 727, and Nicola O'Brien, a nurse practitioner who is Hawking's aide. Hawking suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig's disease). At the celebration of his 65th birthday on January 8 this year, Hawking announced his plans for a zero-gravity flight to prepare for a sub-orbital space flight in 2009 on Virgin Galactic's space service. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett