John Michael "Mike" Lounge (June 28, 1946March 1, 2011) was an American

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

, a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

officer, a

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

veteran, and a

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

astronaut. A veteran of three

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program ...

flights, Lounge logged over 482 hours in space. He was a mission specialist on

STS-51-I STS-51-I was the 20th mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program and the sixth flight of Space Shuttle ''Discovery''. During the mission, ''Discovery'' deployed three communications satellites into orbit. The mission launched from Kennedy Space C ...

(1985) and

STS-26 STS-26 was the 26th NASA Space Shuttle mission and the seventh flight of the orbiter ''Discovery''. The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on September 29, 1988, and landed four days later on October 3, 1988. STS-26 was decla ...

(1988) and was the flight engineer on

STS-35 STS-35 was the tenth flight of Space Shuttle ''Columbia'', the 38th shuttle flight, and a mission devoted to astronomical observations with ASTRO-1, a Spacelab observatory consisting of four telescopes. The mission launched from Kennedy Spac ...

(1990).

Personal

John Michael "Mike" Lounge was born June 28, 1946, in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, but considered Burlington, Colorado to be his hometown. He graduated from Burlington High School in 1964, then received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...

degree from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1969 and a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast t ...

degree in astrogeophysics from the

University of Colorado at Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado sy ...

in 1970. Lounge was an associate

fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is a professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA is the U.S. representative on the International Astronautical Federation and the International Council of ...

. He is survived by his three children. The Lounge family is of Irish and Mexican descent.

Military career

Lounge entered on active duty with the United States Navy following graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy and spent the next nine years in a variety of assignments. He completed

Naval Flight Officer A naval flight officer (NFO) is a commissioned officer in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps who specializes in airborne weapons and sensor systems. NFOs are not pilots (naval aviators), but they may perform many "co-pilot" or ...

training at Pensacola, Florida, went on to advanced training as a radar intercept officer in the F-4J Phantom II, and subsequently reported to Fighter Squadron 142 (

VF-142 VF-142 ''Ghostriders'' was a US Navy fighter squadron established on 24 August 1948 as VF-193, it was redesignated VF-142 on 15 October 1963, and disestablished on 30 April 1995. History Late 1940s to the 1970s Fighter Squadron 193 (VF-193) w ...

) based at

Naval Air Station Miramar Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (MCAS Miramar) , formerly Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Miramar and Naval Air Station (NAS) Miramar, is a United States Marine Corps installation that is home to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, which is the avi ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. While with VF-142, he completed a nine-month

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...

cruise aboard (participating in 99 combat missions in the Vietnam War) and a seven-month

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

cruise aboard . In 1974, he returned to the U.S. Naval Academy as an instructor in the

Physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

Department. Lounge transferred to the Navy Space Project Office in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, in 1976, for a two-year tour as a staff project office. He resigned his regular Navy commission in 1978 and joined the Naval Air Reserve. While in the Naval Air Reserve, he served in Reserve Fighter Squadron 201. Later, he became a Lieutenant Colonel in the

Texas Air National Guard The Texas Air National Guard (TX ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Texas, United States of America. It is, along with the Texas Army National Guard, an element of the Texas National Guard. No element of the Texas Air National Guard is ...

, serving with the 147th Fighter Interceptor Group.''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

''
"The Astronaut Crew"
September 29, 1988. Assessed October 9, 2018.

NASA career

Lounge was employed at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center beginning in July 1978. During this time, he worked as lead engineer for Space Shuttle-launched satellites, and also served as a member of the

Skylab Skylab was the first United States space station, launched by NASA, occupied for about 24 weeks between May 1973 and February 1974. It was operated by three separate three-astronaut crews: Skylab 2, Skylab 3, and Skylab 4. Major operations ...

Reentry Flight Control Team. He completed these assignments while with the Payload Operations Division. Selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in 1980, he completed a one-year training and evaluation period, and became an astronaut in August 1981. He served as a member of the launch support team at

Kennedy Space Center The John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC, originally known as the NASA Launch Operations Center), located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) ten field centers. Since December 1968 ...

for the STS-1,

STS-2 STS-2 was the second Space Shuttle mission conducted by NASA, and the second flight of the orbiter ''Columbia''. The mission, crewed by Joe H. Engle and Richard H. Truly, launched on November 12, 1981, and landed two days later on November 14 ...

, and

STS-3 STS-3 was NASA's third Space Shuttle mission, and was the third mission for the Space Shuttle ''Columbia''. It launched on March 22, 1982, and landed eight days later on March 30, 1982. The mission, crewed by Jack R. Lousma and C. Gordon Ful ...

missions. Following his first flight, he was assigned to the first mission to carry the Centaur (

cryogenically In physics, cryogenics is the production and behaviour of materials at very low temperatures. The 13th IIR International Congress of Refrigeration (held in Washington DC in 1971) endorsed a universal definition of “cryogenics” and “cr ...

fueled) upper stage ( STS-61-F). After the mission was canceled, he participated in Space Station design development. From 1989 through 1991, Lounge served as Chief of the Space Station Support Office, representing astronaut interests in Space Station design and operation planning.

Spaceflights

Space Shuttle ''Discovery'', launched from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, on August 27, 1985. During that mission Lounge's duties included deployment of the Australian AUSSAT communications satellite and operation of the

Remote Manipulator System Canadarm or Canadarm1 (officially Shuttle Remote Manipulator System or SRMS, also SSRMS) is a series of robotic arms that were used on the Space Shuttle orbiters to deploy, manoeuvre, and capture payloads. After the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' ...

(RMS). The crew deployed two other communications satellites, the Navy's SYNCOM IV-4, and American Satellite Company's ASC-1, and also performed a successful on-orbit rendezvous and repair of the ailing 15,400 lb (6,990 kg) SYNCOM IV-3 satellite. STS-51-I completed 112 orbits of the Earth before landing at Edwards Air Force Base,

, on September 3, 1985. Mission duration was 171 hours, 17 minutes, 42 seconds.

''Discovery'', the first flight to be flown after the ''Challenger'' accident, launched from the Kennedy Space Center on September 29, 1988. During the four-day mission, the crewmen successfully deployed the

Tracking and Data Relay Satellite A tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS) is a type of communications satellite that forms part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) used by NASA and other United States government agencies for communications to and fro ...

(TDRS-C), which was subsequently carried to orbit by the

Inertial Upper Stage The Inertial Upper Stage (IUS), originally designated the Interim Upper Stage, was a two-stage, solid-fueled space launch system developed by Boeing for the United States Air Force beginning in 1976 for raising payloads from low Earth orbit to ...

(IUS) rocket. They also operated eleven mid-deck experiments. ''Discovery'' completed 64 orbits of the Earth before landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on October 3, 1988. Mission duration was 97 hours, 57 seconds.

''Columbia'', launched from the Kennedy Space Center on December 2, 1990. Lounge served as flight engineer on this 9-day flight that was dedicated to

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

. Observations of the Universe were collected by the ASTRO-1

ultraviolet Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation ...

telescope and by the Broad Band

X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...

Telescope. ''Columbia'' completed 142 orbits of the Earth before landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on December 10, 1990. Mission duration was 215 hours, 5 minutes, 8 seconds.

Post-NASA career

Lounge resigned from NASA in June 1991 to join

SPACEHAB Astrotech Corporation, formerly Spacehab Inc., is a technology incubator headquartered in Austin, Texas. Astrotech uses technology sourced internally and from research institutions, government laboratories, and universities to fund, manage and s ...

(now Astrotech Corporation). At the time, Lounge explained his resignation from the

NASA Astronaut Corps The NASA Astronaut Corps is a unit of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) that selects, trains, and provides astronauts as crew members for U.S. and international space missions. It is based at Johnson Space Ce ...

by saying "This is a very tough job to leave, but I feel that three flights is my fair share, and I'm ready for a new challenge."Pearlman, Robert Z. (March 1, 2011
"Mike Lounge, Three-Time Shuttle Astronaut, Dies at 64".
www.space.com. Retrieved March 2, 2011 In 2002, Lounge became Director of Space Shuttle and Space Station Program Development for

Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and p ...

. Two years later he became Director for Business Development for integrated defense systems and space exploration. Lounge joined Sure Secure Solutions, an 8(a) company, as Director Business Development in March 2010. He also launched his new engineering venture Cisneros Innovation Strategies the same year.

Death

Lounge died on March 1, 2011, of complications from liver cancer.

Awards and honors

* Navy Air Medals (6) *

Navy Commendation Medal The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth ...

s (with

Combat "V" Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

) (3) * Johnson Space Center Superior Achievement Award (for service as a member of the Skylab Reentry Team) *

NASA Exceptional Service Medal The NASA Exceptional Service Medal is an award granted to U.S. government employees for significant sustained performance characterized by unusual initiative or creative ability that clearly demonstrates substantial improvement in engineering, ae ...

s (3) *

NASA Space Flight Medal The NASA Space Flight Medal is a decoration of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. According to its statutes, it is awarded "for significant achievement or service during individual participation as a civilian or military astrona ...

s (3) * Part of 18th Street in his hometown of Burlington, Colorado was renamed Mike Lounge Drive in his honor.

References

External links

*
Spacefacts biography of John M. Lounge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lounge, John M. 1946 births 2011 deaths NASA civilian astronauts People from Burlington, Colorado United States Naval Academy alumni United States Naval Academy faculty University of Colorado alumni United States Navy officers United States Naval Flight Officers United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Deaths from liver cancer Recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal Texas National Guard personnel United States Air Force officers United States Navy reservists United States Air Force reservists Space Shuttle program astronauts Military personnel from Colorado