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Author Topic:   STS-124: Crew assignments
PowerCat
Member

Posts: 193
From: Herington, KS, USA
Registered: Feb 2006

posted 03-21-2007 03:02 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for PowerCat   Click Here to Email PowerCat     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
According to Wikipedia, the crew for STS-124/Atlantis has been selected. The crew is:
  • Mark Kelly: Commander (3rd flight)
  • Kenneth Ham: Pilot (1)
  • Mike Fossum: MS (2)
  • Karen Nyberg: MS (1)
  • Ronald Garan: MS (1)
  • Stephen Bowen: MS (1)
  • Akihiko Hoshide: MS (1)(from JAXA)
The mission is scheduled to bring the Japanese Experiment Module and the Japanese Remote Manipulator System arm to the ISS.

Robert Pearlman
Editor

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 03-22-2007 03:59 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
NASA release
quote:
NASA Assigns Crew for Shuttle Mission to Install Japanese Lab

NASA has assigned the crew for space shuttle mission STS-124, targeted for launch in February 2008. The flight will deliver the Pressurized Module and robotic arm of the Japanese Experiment Module, known as "Kibo" (hope), to the International Space Station.

Navy Cmdr. Mark E. Kelly will command the space shuttle Atlantis during the mission. Navy Cmdr. Kenneth T. Ham will serve as the pilot. Mission specialists will include NASA astronauts Karen L. Nyberg; Air Force Col. Ronald J. Garan, Jr.; Air Force Reserve Col. Michael E. Fossum; and Navy Cmdr. Stephen G. Bowen. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide also will serve as a mission specialist.

The STS-124 mission is the second of three flights that will launch components to complete the Kibo laboratory. The mission will include two spacewalks to install the new lab and its remote manipulator system. The lab's logistics module, which will have been installed in a temporary location during STS-123, will be attached to the new lab.

The mission will be the third spaceflight for Kelly, the second spaceflight for Fossum and the first spaceflight for Ham, Garan, Nyberg, Bowen and Hoshide.

Kelly flew as the pilot of STS-108 in 2001 and STS-121 in 2006. He considers West Orange, N.J., to be his hometown. Kelly has a bachelor's degree from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, King's Point, N.Y., and a master's degree from the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, Calif. He was selected as an astronaut in 1996.

Ham was born in Plainfield, N.J. He has a bachelor's degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., and a master's degree from the Naval Postgraduate School. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998.

Fossum performed three spacewalks during STS-121 in 2006. He grew up in McAllen, Texas, and has a bachelor's degree from Texas A&M University, College Station, and master's degrees from the Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and the University of Houston, Clear Lake. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998.

Garan was born in Yonkers, N.Y. He has a bachelor's degree from the State University of New York College at Oneonta and master's degrees from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Fla., and the University of Florida, Gainesville. Garan was selected as an astronaut in 2000.

Nyberg also was selected as an astronaut in 2000. She considers her hometown to be Vining, Minn. She has a bachelor's degree from the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, and a master's degree and doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin.

Bowen was born in Cohasset, Mass. He has a bachelor's from the U.S. Naval Academy and a master's from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge. Bowen also was selected as an astronaut in 2000.

Hoshide was born in Tokyo. He was selected by JAXA as one of three astronaut candidates in 1999 and certified by JAXA as an astronaut in 2001. He arrived at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, for training in 2004 and completed NASA Astronaut Candidate Training in 2006. He has a bachelor's degree from Keio University, Tokyo, and a master's degree from the University of Houston.


issman1
Member

Posts: 1042
From: UK
Registered: Apr 2005

posted 04-01-2008 04:03 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for issman1     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
STS-124 mission specialist Ronald Garan was originally selected by NASA as a pilot-astronaut in 2000. He is also due to take part in some of the EVAs. Will this preclude him from piloting/commanding the Shuttle?

Delta7
Member

Posts: 1505
From: Bluffton IN USA
Registered: Oct 2007

posted 04-01-2008 04:04 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by issman1:
Will this preclude him from piloting/commanding the Shuttle?
Four pilot astronauts have in the past made their first flight as a Mission Specialist: Dave Griggs, Steve Nagel, Charlie Precourt and Ken Cockrell. Nagel, Precourt and Cockrell all went on to fly as Pilot and Commander on subsequent flights, and the only thing that prevented Griggs from doing the same was his death in a plane crash (while in training as STS-33 PLT).

Garan's assignment is probably a reflection of the fact that there are more MS than PLT slots to be filled at any given time, and that the decision was made to fill a MS position with a pilot-astronaut (rather than have him wait another year or two for a flight). I wouldn't surprise me to see Randy Bresnick and/or Jim Dutton assigned to MS slots.

There's every reason to believe Garan will fly as pilot on one of the last shuttle missions, but it's very unlikely he'll command a Shuttle, simply because of the number of flights left on the schedule.

OV-105
Member

Posts: 816
From: Ridgecrest, CA
Registered: Sep 2000

posted 04-03-2008 03:31 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for OV-105   Click Here to Email OV-105     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
You can add Ken Bowersox to the list almost. He was first assigned as a MS on STS-50 then John Casper got moved to the CDR spot on STS-54. Bowersox moved up to the PLT spot and Ellen Baker got Bowersox MS seat.

Delta7
Member

Posts: 1505
From: Bluffton IN USA
Registered: Oct 2007

posted 04-03-2008 08:15 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Delta7   Click Here to Email Delta7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by OV-105:
You can add Ken Bowersox to the list almost.
Come to think of it, I believe Andy Allen was originally assigned as MS on STS-46, until Jim Wetherbee was promoted to CDR of STS-52 and Allen moved into the PLT spot; I think it was Marsha Ivins who got his MS seat.

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