Lisa Nowak, former astronaut

So the question of what would happen to astronaut Lisa Nowak when her 30-day leave from NASA was over is answered: Nowak is now a former astronaut. Nowak, who is a Navy captain, will return to the military; NASA said the dismissal has nothing to do with her guilt or innocence on charges of trying to kidnap her romantic rival, but rather with the fact that the agency doesn't have the administrative system needed to handle Nowak's case. NASA spokesman James Hartsfield told the AP that NASA could place Nowak on administrative leave, leave without pay or indefinite suspension if she were a civil servant, but it can't do any of those things because Nowak is a naval officer. Beginning in two weeks, Nowak will be assigned to the staff of the Chief of Naval Air Training in Corpus Christi, though Navy Cmdr. Lydia Robertson said she didn't know exactly what Nowak will be doing.

In other news, Bill Oefelein, a fellow astronaut and Navy commander who said he was romantically involved with Nowak from 2004 until early this year, still has his job even though his relationship with Nowak goes against a Navy policy adopted in 1999. According to that policy, relationships between officers are prohibited when they are "prejudicial to good order or of a nature to bring discredit on the Naval service." And yes, it could apply to Nowak and Oefelein, South Texas College of Law professor (and former Army Judge Advocate General's Corps member) Geoffrey Corn told the Chronicle. "Adultery as a crime seems a little bit antiquated. (But) there is a detriment issue here," Corn said. "When the Navy selects you for a prestigious detail outside the normal structure of the military (such as the astronaut corps), you have high standards to uphold because you represent the Navy." The exact nature of the relationship between Nowak and Oefelein is still kind of unclear: She said they were more than co-workers but less than lovers, but he told police they were "somewhat exclusive." Were they boyfriend and girlfriend, though? "Well I — yeah, I don't, it's hard to consider her a girlfriend, she was an ex, um, I — I wouldn't — she was an ex-interest, I guess," Oefelein told police.

Also, the Chronicle has PDFs of some of the e-mails Oefelein exchanged with the third point in the love triangle, U.S. Air Force Capt. Colleen Shipman. Among the highlights: Oefelein offers Shipman help in the bathtub, Shipman tells Oefelein she's thinking of "a great big giant hug with my legs around you," Oefelein tells Shipman he's suffering from "pent up excitement and no launch," and both of them use an excessive number of exclamation points. Ah, love.