Dr. Ronald McNair Park

Dr. Ronald McNair Park is a one-acre park at Washington Avenue and Eastern Parkway in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. The park is named for Dr. Ronald Erwin McNair, a physicist and NASA astronaut who died in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster on January 28, 1986.

McNair was the second African American to fly in space, having successfully completed a mission aboard Challenger in 1984. He earned his Ph.D. in physics from MIT and was a specialist in laser physics and quantum electronics. His death at age 35, along with six fellow crew members, was one of the most traumatic events in the history of the American space program.

The park features a playground, benches, and landscaped areas along Eastern Parkway, the grand tree-lined boulevard designed by Olmsted and Vaux that connects Grand Army Plaza to the neighborhoods of Crown Heights and Brownsville. The park's location on this historic boulevard gives it a sense of dignity appropriate to its memorial function.

Prospect Heights, the neighborhood surrounding the park, sits near the Brooklyn Museum, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and Prospect Park. The neighborhood has undergone significant gentrification, particularly following the construction of the Barclays Center arena, but retains a diverse residential population.

Dr. Ronald McNair Park honors a man who broke barriers in science and space exploration, embodying the principle that achievement should know no racial or economic limits. For the children who play in the park, McNair's story is a reminder that the stars are within reach.