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STS-126
STS-126 was the one hundred and twenty-fourth NASA Space Shuttle mission, and twenty-second orbital flight of the ''Space Shuttle Endeavour'' (OV-105) to the International Space Station (ISS). The purpose of the mission, referred to as ULF2 by the ISS program, was to deliver equipment and supplies to the station, to service the Solar Alpha Rotary Joints (SARJ), and repair the problem in the starboard SARJ that had limited its use since STS-120. STS-126 launched on 15 November 2008 at 00:55:39 UTC from Launch Pad 39A (LC-39A) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) with no delays or issues. ''Endeavour'' successfully docked with the station on 16 November 2008. After spending 15 days, 20 hours, 30 minutes, and 30 seconds docked to the station, during which the crew performed four spacewalks, and transferred cargo, the orbiter undocked on 28 November 2008. Due to poor weather at Kennedy Space Center, ''Endeavour'' landed at Edwards Air Force Base on 30 November 2008 at 21:25:09 U ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper
Heidemarie Martha Stefanyshyn-Piper (born February 7, 1963) is an American Naval officer and former NASA astronaut. She has achieved the rank of Captain in the United States Navy. She is also a qualified and experienced salvage officer. Her major salvage projects include de-stranding the tanker ''Exxon Houston'' off the coast of Barbers Point, on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, and developing the plan for the Peruvian Navy salvage of the Peruvian submarine . Stefanyshyn-Piper has received numerous honors and awards, such as the Meritorious Service Medal, two Navy Commendation Medals, and two Navy Achievement Medals. She has flown on two Space Shuttle missions, STS-115 and STS-126, during which she completed five spacewalks totaling 33 hours and 42 minutes. , she ranks 39th on the all-time list of space walkers by duration. Early life and education Stefanyshyn-Piper was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, United States, of Ukrainian-American heritage. Her father, Michael (Mykhailo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stephen Bowen (astronaut)
Stephen Gerard "Steve" Bowen (born February 13, 1964) is a United States Navy submariner and a NASA astronaut; he was the second submariner to travel into space. Bowen has been on three spaceflights, all of which were Space Shuttle missions to the International Space Station. His first mission, STS-126, took place in November 2008, and his second was STS-132 in May 2010. In March 2011, Bowen completed his third spaceflight as a Mission Specialist on STS-133, which was Space Shuttle Space Shuttle Discovery, ''Discovery'''s final planned flight. Having flown on both STS-132 and STS-133, he became the first and only astronaut to fly on consecutive shuttle missions. Originally Timothy L. Kopra, Tim Kopra was scheduled to fly on STS-133, but had a bicycle injury shortly before the mission, and so he was replaced by Bowen. On December 16, 2021, NASA assigned Bowen as commander of SpaceX Crew-6 mission to the ISS, scheduled to launch in 2023. Personal life and early education Bowen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christopher Ferguson
Christopher J. "Fergy" Ferguson (born September 1, 1961) is a Boeing commercial astronaut and a retired United States Navy Captain and NASA astronaut. He was the pilot of Space Shuttle ''Atlantis'' on his first mission to space, STS-115, which launched on September 9, 2006 and returned to Earth on September 21, 2006. He then commanded STS-126 aboard . In 2011, he was assigned as commander of STS-135, which was the final mission of the space shuttle program. On December 9, 2011, he retired from NASA and became director of Crew and Mission Operations for Boeing's Commercial Crew Program. In August 2018, Ferguson was assigned to the first test flight of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner, although he stepped down from the mission in October 2020. Education Ferguson was born September 1, 1961, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He attended Archbishop Ryan High School, from which he graduated in 1979. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shane Kimbrough
Robert Shane Kimbrough (born June 4, 1967) is a retired United States Army officer and NASA astronaut. He was part of the first group of candidates selected for NASA astronaut training following the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster. Kimbrough is a veteran of three spaceflights, the first being a Space Shuttle flight, and the second being a six-month mission to the ISS on board a Russian Soyuz craft. He was the commander of the International Space Station for Expedition 50, and returned to Earth in April 2017. He is married to the former Robbie Lynn Nickels. Early life Born June 4, 1967, in Killeen, Texas, Kimbrough attended The Lovett School in Atlanta, Georgia, graduating in 1985. Kimbrough graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1989 with a B.S. in aerospace engineering. He played for the West Point baseball team for 4 years, and was selected as team captain his senior year. Military career Kimbrough served as an Apache helicopter pilot in the first Gulf Wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
STS-124
STS-124 was a Space Shuttle mission, flown by Space Shuttle ''Discovery'' to the International Space Station. ''Discovery'' launched on 31 May 2008 at 17:02 EDT, moved from an earlier scheduled launch date of 25 May 2008, and landed safely at the Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility, at 11:15 EDT on 14 June 2008. Its objective was to deliver the largest module of the space station – '' Kibō'', the Japanese Experiment Module pressurized section. The mission is also referred to as ISS-1J by the ISS program. Crew Crew notes * Stephen G. Bowen was originally assigned to STS-124 but was moved to STS-126 to allow this mission to rotate an ISS crew member. Bowen was scheduled to perform the EVAs on the flight along with Fossum. Garan took his place for the EVAs. Commander Kelly discusses the crew "I'm really fortunate to be given the crew members that I have on this mission. It's myself and six others. We do swap one of our crew members with the expedition crew membe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joan Higginbotham
Joan Elizabeth Higginbotham (born August 3, 1964) is an electrical engineer and a former NASA astronaut. She flew aboard Space Shuttle ''Discovery'' mission STS-116 as a mission specialist and is the third African American woman to go into space, after Mae Jemison and Stephanie Wilson. Early life and education Higginbotham was born in Chicago, Illinois, and attended Whitney Young Magnet High School, graduating in 1982. She received a Bachelor of Science degree from the Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 1987, and a master's in management science (1992) and in space systems (1996) both from the Florida Institute of Technology. Higginbotham is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and The Links, Incorporated. Career NASA Higginbotham began her career in 1987, two weeks after getting her Bachelor of Science degree, at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida, as a Payload Electrical Engineer in the Electrical and Telecommunications Systems Division. Within six months s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Space Shuttle Endeavour
Space Shuttle ''Endeavour'' (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-105) is a retired orbiter from NASA's Space Shuttle program and the fifth and final operational Shuttle built. It embarked on its first mission, STS-49, in May 1992 and its 25th and final mission, STS-134, in May 2011. STS-134 was expected to be the final mission of the Space Shuttle program, but with the authorization of STS-135 by the United States Congress, Space Shuttle Atlantis, ''Atlantis'' became the last shuttle to fly. The United States Congress approved the construction of ''Endeavour'' in 1987 to replace the Space Shuttle Challenger, Space Shuttle ''Challenger'', which was Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, destroyed in 1986. NASA chose, on cost grounds, to build much of ''Endeavour'' from spare parts rather than refitting the Space Shuttle Enterprise, Space Shuttle ''Enterprise'', and used structural spares built during the construction of ''Space Shuttle Discovery, Discovery'' and Space Shuttle Atlantis, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is Edwards, California. The base was named after World War II USAAF veteran and test pilot Capt. Glen Edwards in 1950; prior to then the facility was named Muroc Air Force Base. It is the home of the Air Force Test Center, Air Force Test Pilot School, and NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center. It is the Air Force Materiel Command center for conducting and supporting research and development of flight, as well as testing and evaluating aerospace systems from concept to combat. It also hosts many test activities conducted by America's commercial aerospace industry. Notable occurrences at Edwards include Chuck Yeager's flight that broke the sound barrier in the Bell X-1, test flights of the North American X-15, the first landings of the S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Donald Pettit
Donald Roy Pettit (born April 20, 1955) is an American astronaut and chemical engineer. He is a veteran of two long-duration stays aboard the International Space Station, one Space Shuttle mission and a six-week expedition to find meteorites in Antarctica. As of 2022, at age 67, he is NASA's oldest active astronaut. Early life and education Pettit was raised in Silverton, Oregon, and is an Eagle Scout. He is married to Micki Pettit and has twin sons. Pettit earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering from Oregon State University in 1978, followed by a Ph.D. from the University of Arizona in 1983. NASA career Pettit worked as a scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory until 1996 when he was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA. He was a junior advisor to the Synthesis Committee of the Space Exploration Initiative on its May 1991 report "America at the Threshold", recommending plans for a human mission to Mars. Spaceflight experience Expedition 6 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eric Boe
Eric Allen Boe (born October 1, 1964) is a retired United States Air Force fighter pilot, Colonel, test pilot, and a current, active NASA astronaut. He flew as the pilot of Space Shuttle missions STS-126 and STS-133. Early life and education Boe was born in Miami, Florida, and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Henderson High School, Chamblee, Georgia, in 1983. He was a cadet in the Georgia Wing of the Civil Air Patrol. While a cadet, Eric Boe earned the General Carl A Spaatz Award, the highest award given to Civil Air Patrol cadets. Colonel Boe is still a senior member in the Texas Wing of the Civil Air Patrol, along with his son, who recently became a cadet. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in astronautical engineering from the United States Air Force Academy in 1987, and a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1997. He is married to the former Kristen Newman of Thousand Oaks, California, and they have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Expedition 18
Expedition 18 was the 18th permanent crew of the International Space Station (ISS). The first two crew members, Michael Fincke, and Yuri Lonchakov were launched on 12 October 2008, aboard Soyuz TMA-13. With them was astronaut Sandra Magnus, who joined the Expedition 18 crew after launching on STS-126 and remained until departing on STS-119 on 25 March 2009. She was replaced by JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata, who arrived at the ISS on STS-119 on 17 March 2009. Gregory Chamitoff, who joined Expedition 18 after Expedition 17 left the station, ended his stay aboard ISS and returned to Earth with the STS-126 crew. Crew Crew notes Salizhan Sharipov, was originally slated to be the Soyuz commander and Expedition 18 Flight Engineer 1, but was replaced by his back-up Yuri Lonchakov. Backup crew * Gennady Padalka – Commander – RSA (for Lonchakov) * Michael Barratt- Flight Engineer – NASA (for Fincke) * Timothy Kopra – Flight Engineer – NASA (for Chamitoff) *Nicole Stott ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sandra Magnus
Sandra Hall Magnus (born October 30, 1964) is an American engineer and a former NASA astronaut. She returned to Earth with the crew of STS-119 ''Discovery'' on March 28, 2009, after having spent 134 days in orbit. She was assigned to the crew of STS-135, the final mission of the Space Shuttle. She is also a licensed amateur radio operator with the call sign KE5FYE. From 2012 until 2018 Magnus was the executive director of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Biography Early life and education Magnus was born and raised in Belleville, Illinois. She earned degrees in physics and electrical engineering from the University of Missouri–Rolla (now known as the Missouri University of Science and Technology) before earning a PhD in materials science and engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1996. Research for her dissertation, entitled "An Investigation of the relationship between the thermochemistry and emission behavior of thermionic cathodes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
