CLASS OF 2008 PATCH

The class patch incorporates elements important to the Aerospace Medicine Class of 2008.  The caduceus' wings are based on military aviator's wings, representing the central role of aviation in our training.  The axial elements of the caduceus contain a torch and traditional serpents wrapped around a spear.  The torch represents knowledge while the 'tip of the spear' represents the operational aspects of aviation and spaceflight.  The intersection of the two reflect the unique environment in which aerospace medicine exists.

The background is divided into our two hemispheres of operation, aviation and spaceflight.  The left hemisphere shows North and South America, with a star marking our residency site at UTMB in Galveston, TX.  NASA's role in our training is signified by the Space Shuttle launching from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  The Shuttle is flanked by an F-22 Raptor and an AH-64 Apache, which acknowledges Air Force and Army resident participation in this program.

The right hemisphere of the patch contains images of the International Space Station, Moon and Mars - three celestial objects of great importance to NASA's future exploration goals.  The 9 stars in the bottom right panel represent the 9 residents in our class.  These nine stars are also representative of the constellation Aries - the Ram, which happens to be the acronym by which "Residents in Aerospace Medicine" are known.  The 3 stars in the top right panel represent the 3 additional residents that joined our group for the first half of the MPH year.

The upper and lower inscriptions are self-explanatory.  While residents in our class have differing program lengths, (2, 3 and 4 years), we elected to put Class of 2008 on the patch.  The bottom panel describes the source of participating residents - the US Air Force, the US Army and the University of Texas Medical Branch.  The US and Texas flags are also portrayed.