Secret new life of trailblazing astronaut who destroyed her career with a diaper and trench coat… and why NASA wants to forget she ever went to space

The moment Lisa Nowak became a household name should have been in the summer of 2006, when she blasted into space aboard a NASA shuttle.

It was the culmination of decades of discipline and devotion to her passion for the solar system – a 12-day mission she had spent most of her adult life working toward.

Instead, her name became infamous a year later, after a decision driven by raw, deeply personal emotion sent her spectacularly crashing back to Earth.

In February 2007, Nowak drove 900 miles from Houston, home of NASA mission control, to Orlando to confront Colleen Shipman, an Air Force captain who was dating Nowak’s ex-boyfriend, fellow astronaut William ‘Bill’ Oefelein.

According to police, she packed her car for the 14-hour journey with what investigators described as tactical items for an attack: a trench coat, black wig, pepper spray, a BB gun, rope, trash bags and an eight-inch knife.

But it was one detail more than any other that transfixed the public: Police reports claimed Nowak was wearing a space diaper so she would not have to stop for bathroom breaks during the drive.

Disguised in the wig and trench coat, Nowak approached Shipman’s car in the parking garage of Orlando International Airport. She banged on the window and asked for a ride. When Shipman lowered it, Nowak sprayed her with pepper spray and tried to get inside the vehicle.

Shipman managed to escape and call 911 – she was unhurt in the attack, but later testified that it was ‘the most traumatic experience of my entire life.’ Nowak was later arrested and charged with attempted murder, setting off one of the most jaw-dropping downfalls in modern American science history.

Nowak (pictured) was a decorated astronaut before she violently confronted her ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend 

Nowak (right) orbited the earth with a seven-member crew (pictured) aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 2006

Nowak’s stunning capitulation also became the inspiration for Natalie Portman’s character in the 2019 film Lucy in the Sky.

Now, almost 20 years later, the former trailblazing astronaut lives quietly, far from the headlines that once defined her.

She works in the private science sector, lives outside Houston, sees her adult children from time to time and occasionally goes on dates. Interview requests have been politely declined.

That low-profile existence is a world away from the mid-2000s, when Nowak was one of NASA’s most visible figures. 

‘Even 18 years later, it’s humiliating,’ a friend who now filters interview requests on her behalf told the Daily Mail. ‘After everything she achieved, she’s still known as the astronaut who wore a diaper.’

A trial at the time had exposed what really happened that day, and how Shipman felt in that moment.

‘She was going to kill me,’ Shipman told the court following the attack. ‘I could see it in her eyes.’ 

Nowak was arrested on attempted murder and kidnapping charges. 

According to police reports, Nowak said, ‘I don’t know what happened. I’m so sorry. I just want to go home, can we pretend that nothing actually happened?’ as she was being booked into the Orange County Jail.

Overnight, Nowak’s life imploded. She was suspended – and later fired – from her job at NASA.

A married mom of three preteens at the time, she watched her family fall apart as her husband, Richard, asked for a divorce.

She became a punchline on late-night talk shows, with her tearful and disheveled mugshot going viral.

‘She doesn’t talk about it, but she thinks about it,’ Nowak’s friend told the Daily Mail. ‘It changed the entire trajectory of her life and showed her just how completely a scandal can take over everything.’ 

In November 2009 – more than two years after the attack – Nowak pleaded guilty to reduced charges of felony burglary and misdemeanor battery. As part of the plea deal, she was sentenced to one year of probation, court fees and an order to write a letter of apology to Shipman. 

‘I am sincerely sorry for causing fear and misunderstanding and all of the intense public exposure that you have suffered,’ Nowak told Shipman in court during her sentencing. ‘I hope very much that we can all move forward from this with privacy and peace.’ 

Nowak (pictured) was charged with attempted murder after attacking Colleen Shipman 

Astronaut William Oefelein (pictured) had briefly dated Nowak before getting involved with Colleen Shipman, who he later married 

Colleen Shipman (pictured) testified that she was afraid for her life during the attack

After Nowak’s arrest, her husband Richard (left) filed for divorce and requested shared custody of their twin daughters and older son

Nowak’s stunning capitulation became the inspiration for Natalie Portman’s character in the 2019 film Lucy in the Sky (pictured)

Despite the legal case closing, Nowak was still trying to rebuild her shattered personal life.

She moved out of Texas for a few years and tried to build a support system to help her through those times. 

‘Those were some very dark days for her,’ her friend said. ‘She was out of work. No one would hire her.

‘Friends turned their back on her, colleagues cut her out of their lives. She paid a big price for what she did.

‘She took responsibility – and still takes responsibility – that it was her own actions that led to things going bad. 

‘She doesn’t think about Bill or Colleen specifically, but they’re obviously part of the story of the darkest days of her life. She wishes that everything could have been done differently on her part.’ 

Shipman rebounded from the attack. She eventually married Oefelein, and they moved to Alaska.

She wrote a novel, gave birth to a son and settled into private life. Shipman has only given one interview. 

‘A lot of people ask, ‘Did you forgive Lisa Nowak for what she did?” she told People in 2017.

‘She committed a crime, she was convicted, she finished her sentence. I’m not sure there’s anything really for me to forgive.’

As for Nowak, her friend told the Daily Mail she is ‘at peace’ in her life. 

‘She lives quietly. People don’t recognize her. She just lives her life and does her thing, and no one bothers her. And that’s just fine by her.’