Michael Edward Fossum (born December 19, 1957, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota) is a former American

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

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 l ...

, and th
Chief Operating Officer of Texas A&M University at Galveston
He flew into space on board the

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

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 na ...

missions STS-121 and

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 t ...

and served as a mission specialist of

Expedition 28 Expedition 28 was the 28th long-duration expedition to the International Space Station, and began on 23 May 2011 with the departure of the members of Expedition 27. The first three members of Expedition 28 arrived on the ISS aboard the Soyuz TMA ...

and commander of Expedition 29 aboard the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA ...

Air Force

Fossum was involved with the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

during his undergraduate years at Texas A&M and served as commander of Squadron 3 in the Corps of Cadets. He graduated in mechanical engineering in 1980. He received his master's in physical science (space science) from the University of Houston. He was selected to attend Air Force Test Pilot School from which he flew 34 different types of

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...

. . He left active duty for the Air Force Reserve in 1992 to work for NASA and retired as a colonel in the USAFR in 2010.

NASA

The first time Fossum became interested in being an astronaut was at age 12 while watching the

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, an ...

moon landing. He rekindled this dream while with the Air Force at

Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight control are conducted. It was renamed in honor of the late U ...

during the early 1990s. In January 1993, Fossum was employed by NASA as a

Systems Engineer Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field of engineering and engineering management that focuses on how to design, integrate, and manage complex systems over their life cycles. At its core, systems engineering utilizes systems thinking p ...

. His primary responsibilities were to evaluate the Russian

Soyuz spacecraft Soyuz () is a series of spacecraft which has been in service since the 1960s, having made more than 140 flights. It was designed for the Soviet space program by the Korolev Design Bureau (now Energia). The Soyuz succeeded the Voskhod spacecraf ...

for use as an emergency escape vehicle for the new

. Later in 1993, Fossum was selected to represent the Flight Crew Operations Directorate in an extensive redesign of the International Space Station (ISS). After this, he continued work for the crew office and Mission Operations Directorate in the area of assembly operations. In 1996, Fossum supported the Astronaut Office as a Technical Assistant for Space Shuttle, supporting design and management reviews. In 1997, he served as a

Flight Test Engineer A flight test engineer (FTE) is an engineer involved in the flight testing of prototype aircraft or aircraft systems. Overview The flight test engineer generally has overall responsibility for the planning of a specific flight test phase, which in ...

on the X-38, a prototype crew escape vehicle for the ISS, which was under development in house by the Engineering Directorate at NASA-JSC and flight tested at NASA Dryden. Fossum was selected by NASA as an Astronaut Candidate in June 1998, having applied during almost every selection period since 1988 (7 times). He reported for training in August 1998. Fossum previously served as the Astronaut Office Lead for ISS flight software development. As a Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) in Mission Control, Fossum supported several flights, including Lead CAPCOM for ISS Expedition 6. A veteran of three space flights, STS-121 in 2006, STS-124 in 2008 and Expedition 28/29 in 2011, Fossum has logged more than 194 days in space, including more than 48 hours of Extravehicular Activity (EVA) in seven spacewalks. After returning to Earth in 2011, Fossum has served in a number of capacities, including assistant to the chief of the astronaut office for the International Space Station.

Space flight

He entered space for the first time on July 4, 2006, as a mission specialist of mission STS-121 to the

where he participated in three

spacewalk Extravehicular activity (EVA) is any activity done by an astronaut in outer space outside a spacecraft. In the absence of a breathable atmosphere of Earth, Earthlike atmosphere, the astronaut is completely reliant on a space suit for environmen ...

s. On July 8, Fossum with Piers Sellers conducted a 7 and a half hour spacewalk making a repair to the ISS and testing using the Shuttle's arm as a platform for making repairs to the Shuttle. Fossum became the first Texas A&M undergraduate to travel to space. In 2008, Fossum assumed the role of mission specialist on board STS-124 launching on May 31, 2008. The mission's primary objective was the delivery and installment of Japan's Kibo Laboratory module. Once attached, this module became the largest and most scientifically capable addition to the International Space Station. Fossum took part in the installation as lead spacewalker, EVA-1, accompanied by fellow spacewalker Ron Garan. They would ultimately performed three spacewalks during the 14-day mission. On June 7, 2011, Fossum launched with crewmates Sergey Alexandrovich Volkov and

Satoshi Furukawa is a Japanese surgeon and JAXA astronaut. Furukawa was assigned to the International Space Station as a flight engineer on long-duration missions Expedition 28/ 29, lifting off 7 June 2011 and returning 22 November 2011. Medical career Furakawa ...

Soyuz TMA-02M Soyuz TMA-02M was a space mission that transported three members of the Expedition 28 crew to the International Space Station. TMA-02M was the 110th flight of a Soyuz spacecraft (first launched 1967) and the second flight of the improved Soyuz ...

from the

Baikonur Cosmodrome The Baikonur Cosmodrome ( kk, Байқоңыр ғарыш айлағы, translit=Baiqoñyr ğaryş ailağy, ; russian: Космодром Байконур, translit=Kosmodrom Baykonur, ) is a spaceport in an area of southern Kazakhstan leased to R ...

, Kazakhstan, to the ISS to join the crew of

. Upon the departure of Expedition 28, Fossum served as ISS Commander during Expedition 29 from September 9 until November 21, 2011. He returned to Earth on November 22, 2011. During Expedition 28, Fossum performed his seventh

EVA Eva or EVA may refer to: * Eva (name), a feminine given name Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters * Eva (Dynamite Entertainment), a comic book character by Dynamite Entertainment * Eva (''Devil May Cry''), Dante's mother in t ...

with Ronald Garan which lasted 6 hours and 31 minutes. During the EVA They retrieved a failed pump module for return to Earth, installed two experiments and repaired a new base for the

Canada Arm 2 The Mobile Servicing System (MSS), is a robotic system on board the International Space Station (ISS). Launched to the ISS in 2001, it plays a key role in station assembly and maintenance; it moves equipment and supplies around the station, supp ...

Texas A&M University at Galveston

In January 2017, Fossum left NASA and accepted a position wit
Texas A&M University at Galveston
as vice president and chief operating officer. In October of 2019, Colonel Fossum was appointed as Superintendent of Texas A&M Maritime Academy; Texas A&M at Galveston's chapter of the institution's famed corps of cadets; in addition to his aforementioned duties at Texas A&M at Galveston.

Personal

Fossum is married to the former Melanie J. London and they have four children together. In his spare time he enjoys activities with his family and pastimes such as jogging and

backpacking Backpacking may refer to: * Backpacking (travel), low-cost, independent, international travel * Backpacking (hiking), trekking and camping overnight in the wilderness * Ultralight backpacking, a style of wilderness backpacking with an emphasis on ...

. As an

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

, he is heavily involved with the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...

(BSA) as well as the Order of the Arrow and is the Scoutmaster of Troop 1598 based in Webster, TX. The BSA has honored him with its Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. On May 30, 2007, Fossum was invited to be the keynote speaker at the opening ceremony at

Philmont Scout Ranch Philmont Scout Ranch is a ranch located in Colfax County, New Mexico, near the village of Cimarron; it covers of wilderness in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains on the east side of the Cimarron Range of the Rocky Mountains. Donated by oil baro ...

, starting off the ranch's 2007 season by relating to the staff there how his experiences both in

scouting Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking ...

and at Philmontn helped him overcome many challenges in his life. He still keeps a close affiliation with

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

and the university's Corps of Cadets, from which he graduated in 1980. Since returning from his first mission in 2006, he has been involved in many different Texas A&M speaking events, including Elephant Walk, Aggie Muster, JCAP (Corps of Cadets), and the presentation of an Aggie flag flown on STS-121 at a Texas A&M football game. On March 6, 2010, Fossum became the youngest person inducted into the Corps of Cadets Hall of Honor. In 2011, NASA worked with the Texas A&M School of Engineering to host a live interview from the ISS between Fossum and Aggie students. A junior high school in McAllen, Texas, has been named after Fossum. Fossum resides in Houston,TX.

Awards and decorations

References

External links

*
Interview
*
The STS-121 Mission

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fossum, Michael E. 1957 births Air Force Institute of Technology alumni U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School alumni Living people People from Sioux Falls, South Dakota Systems engineers Texas A&M University alumni University of Houston–Clear Lake alumni Commanders of the International Space Station United States Air Force officers United States Air Force reservists NASA civilian astronauts American people of Norwegian descent Space Shuttle program astronauts Recipients of the NASA Distinguished Service Medal Spacewalkers