Pittsburgh native and NASA astronaut Warren Hoburg to lead Terrible Towel Twirl before Steelers game
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Before Sunday's Steelers game, a man who's been to the Great Beyond will lead the Terrible Towel Twirl.
Warren 'Woody' Hoburg is a North Allegheny native who was selected to go on a mission to the International Space Station in 2021.
A lifelong Steelers fan, one of the many personal items he took above the Earth's orbit was a Terrible Towel he'd had for years. Now, he's back in Pittsburgh to help lead the charge for the black and gold, something he tells KDKA-TV is a dream come true.
"It's really meaningful, and it's meaningful to be back here at home in Pittsburgh and sharing a bit of what we do aboard the space station. I never would have guessed that I would be the one leading the towel twirl for the Pittsburgh Steelers, but it's such a special moment," Hoburg said. "Getting to take that Terrible Towel with me to space meant a lot to me. That's actually the towel I will be using for the Towel Twirl, the one that flew to space. And it's just great to be here, to have a chance to interact with the fans, share a bit of what we do aboard the space station."
In anticipation of the events, Woody and NASA's newly named Glenn Research Center Director and Carnegie Mellon alum James Kenyon visited Carnegie Mellon's mission control facility to meet with students.