Astronaut Training and Operations

Photos capturing astronauts in training and operational settings aboard spacecraft, showcasing activities such as weightlessness training and prelaunch preparations.

S69-35317 (18 May 1969) --- Interior view of the White Room at Pad B, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, showing preparations being made for insertion of the Apollo 10 crew into their spacecraft during the prelaunch countdown. In the background is astronaut Thomas P. Stafford, commander. Astronaut Eugene A. Cernan, lunar module pilot, is in right foreground. Out of view is astronaut John W. Young, command module pilot. Liftoff for the lunar orbit mission was at 12 49 p.m. (EDT), May 18, 1969.

S66-40098 (17 June 1966) --- Astronaut Michael Collins, prime crew pilot of the Gemini-10 spaceflight, undergoes zero-gravity (weightlessness) training aboard an Air Force KC-135 aircraft. He practices with micrometeorite experiment-type equipment. The KC-135 flew a parabolic curve to create the zero-gravity condition. This training is in preparation for Collins' Gemini-10 extravehicular activity.

STS004-26-243 (27 June 1982) --- Astronaut Henry W. Hartsfield Jr., STS-4 pilot, has just torn off a rather prolific gathering of hard copy print-outs from the teleprinter aboard the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Columbia during NASAs fourth orbital flight test. The teleprinter is located in the middeck area of the reusable spacecraft. The photograph was made by astronaut Thomas K. Mattingly II, STS-4 commander. The two shared a little more than seven days of duties aboard the space shuttle Columbia.

S81-30422 (12-14 April 1981) --- Astronaut John W. Young, STS-1 commander, cleans off his razor after shaving his face on the middeck of the space shuttle orbiter Columbia. A food tray can be seen mounted on a locker door at right. This 35mm frame was exposed by astronaut Robert L. Crippen, pilot.

S69-35317 (18 May 1969) --- Interior view of the White Room at Pad B, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, showing preparations being made for insertion of the Apollo 10 crew into their spacecraft during the prelaunch countdown. In the background is astronaut Thomas P. Stafford, commander. Astronaut Eugene A. Cernan, lunar module pilot, is in right foreground. Out of view is astronaut John W. Young, command module pilot. Liftoff for the lunar orbit mission was at 12 49 p.m. (EDT), May 18, 1969.

Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-47) onboard photo of Astronaut N. Jan Davis at work at the Continuous Heating Furnace (CHF) in the Spacelab-J Science Module. Spacelab-J is a combined National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) and NASA mission. The objectives included life sciences, microgravity and technology research.

S66-51073 (15 Aug. 1966) --- Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., prime crew pilot of the Gemini-12 spaceflight, undergoes evaluation procedures with the Astronaut Maneuvering Unit in the 30-foot altitude chamber at McDonnell. The suited Aldrin is wearing an AMU backpack and an Extravehicular Life Support System (ELSS) chest pack.

STS061-87-046 (5 Dec 1993) --- Astronauts Jeffrey A. Hoffman (right) and F. Story Musgrave work near the base of the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) on the first of five spacewalks. Their particular mission here is to replace failed Rate Sensor Units (RSU) inside the telescope's housing. Hoffman is anchored to a foot restraint, mounted on the end of the Space Shuttle Endeavour's Remote Manipulator System (RMS) arm, while Musgrave is standing on a foot restraint attached to a support structure in the cargo bay.

Launched on June 20, 1996, the STS-78 missions primary payload was the Life and Microgravity Spacelab (LMS), which was managed by the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). During the 17 day space flight, the crew conducted a diverse slate of experiments divided into a mix of life science and microgravity investigations. In a manner very similar to future International Space Station operations, LMS researchers from the United States and their European counterparts shared resources such as crew time and equipment. Five space agencies (NASA/USA, European Space Agency/Europe (ESA), French Space Agency/France, Canadian Space Agency /Canada, and Italian Space Agency/Italy) along with research scientists from 10 countries worked together on the design, development and construction of the LMS. In this onboard photograph, mission commander Terence Henricks is checking out equipment.

STS066-22-012 (3-14 Nov 1994) --- On the Space Shuttle Atlantis' mid-deck, astronaut Donald R. McMonagle, mission commander, works with the Heat Pipe Performance (HPP-2) experiment. HPP-2 was flown to investigate the thermal performance and fluid dynamics of heat pipes operating with asymmetric and multiple heating zones under microgravity conditions. McMonagle was joined by four other NASA astronauts and a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut for 11-days aboard Atlantis in Earth-orbit in support of the Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science (ATLAS-3) mission.

STS029-24-004 (18 March 1989) --- STS-29 crewmembers, wearing launch and entry suits (LESs) and launch and entry helmets (LEHs), review checklists on Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103, flight deck. Commander Michael L. Coats is seated at the forward flight deck commanders station with Mission Specialist (MS) James F. Buchli on aft flight deck strapped in mission specialist seat. OV-103 makes its return after five days in space. Note color in forward windows W1, W2, W3 caused by friction of entry through the Earth's atmosphere. Personal Egress Air Pack (PEAP) is visible on pilots seat back.

(April 1981) --- Astronaut Robert L. Crippen, STS-1 pilot, is behind his station in the flight deck of Columbia. He has a spoon in his hand. The windows prominent in the scene are the ones through which a number of Earth scenes were photographed with a 70mm camera by the two astronauts. Clouds over water can be seen through them.

S68-42908 (13 Nov. 1968) --- The prime crew members for the Apollo 10 mission are about to participate in water egress training in the Gulf of Mexico. Below deck on the NASA retriever vessel, from the left, are astronauts Eugene A. Cernan, lunar module pilot; Thomas P. Stafford, commander; and John W. Young, command module pilot.

S81-38547 (10 Sept. 1981) --- Astronauts Joe H. Engle, right, and Richard H. Truly, prime crew members for STS-2, complete their suiting up chores prior to a countdown demonstration test (CDDT). They are in the operations and checkout building at the Kennedy Space Center. The two have a launch scheduled for late autumn of this year.

Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., wearing an Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), verifies fit of the Portable Life Support System (PLSS) strap length during lunar surface training at the Kennedy Space Center. Aldrin is the prime crew lunar module pilot of the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission. Aldrin's PLSS backpack is attached to a lunar weight simulator.

STS-46 Pilot Allen, in LES, at pilots station on OV-104's forward flight deck.

S69-32789 (3 April 1969) --- Astronaut John W. Young, Apollo 10 prime crew command module pilot, participates in simulation activity in the Apollo Mission Simulator at the Kennedy Space Center during preparations for his scheduled lunar orbit mission.

S69-56699 (22 Oct. 1969) --- Astronauts Charles Conrad Jr. (left), Apollo 12 commander; and Alan L. Bean, lunar module pilot, are shown in the Apollo Lunar Module Mission Simulator during simulator training at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). Apollo 12 will be the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's

STS078-306-035 (20 June - 7 July 1996) --- Astronaut Susan J. Helms, payload commander, and payload specialist Jean-Jacques Favier, representing the French Space Agency (CNES), insert a test container into the Bubble Drop Particle Unit (BDPU) in the Life and Microgravity Spacelab (LMS-1) Science Module aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia. The fluid in the chamber is heated and the fluid processes are observed by use of three internal cameras mounted inside the BDPU. Investigations in this facility will help characterize interfacial processes involving either bubbles, drops, liquid columns or liquid layers.

STS026-09-021 (3 Oct 1988) --- Astronaut Richard O. Covey, STS-26 pilot, wearing sleep mask (blindfold) and a headset, props his feet under the pilots seat and rests his head and back on the aft flight deck on orbit station panels while he sleeps. At Covey's right are the mission station control panels.

S66-47857 (11 Aug. 1966) --- Astronaut William A. Anders, backup crew pilot of the Gemini-11 spaceflight, participates in extravehicular activity (EVA) training under zero-gravity conditions aboard a KC-135 aircraft from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio. He is suited, and he also wears an Extravehicular Life Support System (ELSS) chest pack.

S79-25014 (13 Dec. 1978) --- Astronaut Robert L. Crippen, pilot of the first space shuttle orbital flight test (STS-1), eases into a water immersion facility (WIF) during a training session in the Johnson Space Centers training and test facility (Bldg. 260). The WIF affords one of two ways to simulate the feeling of weightlessness experienced during space extravehicular activity (EVA), the other being inside aircraft flying a parabolic curve. Crippen will be joined by astronaut John W. Young, commander for the STS-1 flight.

Astronauts David Griggs and Jeffrey Hoffman in Egress Training. 1. ASTRONAUT GRIGGS, DAVID - STS-51E 2. STS-51E - CREW TRAINING JSC, HOUSTON, TX

STS009-003-075 (28 November - 8 December 1983) --- Astronaut John W. Young (left), STS-9 crew commander; and Ulf Merbold, payload specialist, enjoy a meal in the middeck of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Columbia. Merbold is a physicist from the Federal Republic of Germany, representing the European Space Agency (ESA) on this 10-day flight. Many of the nearby stowage lockers are used for clothing and food. The photograph was made with a 35mm camera.

Skylab-3 was the second marned mission in the skylab project. The crew spent 59 days in orbit. In this photo, Astronaut Jack Lousma deploys the Twin Pole Sun Shield created by Marshall Space Flight Center team members to replace the micrometeoroid shield, a thin protective cylinder surrounding the workshop protecting it from tiny space particles and the sun's scorching heat. The shield was damaged during the Skylab-2 mission.

STS076-344-013 (24 March 1996)--- Continuing an in-space tradition, astronaut Kevin P. Chilton (right), mission commander, shakes hands with cosmonaut Yury I. Onufrienko, Mir-21 commander, in the tunnel connecting the Space Shuttle Atlantis and Russia's Mir Space Station. A short time earlier two crews successfully pulled off the third hard-docking of their respective spacecraft. The image was made with a 35mm camera.

STS042-203-024 (22-30 Jan. 1992) --- Astronaut David C. Hilmers (right), STS-42 mission specialist, assists European Space Agency (ESA) payload specialist Ulf Merbold with the visual stimulator experiment on the Space Shuttle Discovery's middeck. This particular test is part of an ongoing study of the Space Adaptation Syndrome (SAS). Seated in a stationary mini-sled, Merbold (or any other subject for this test) stares at an umbrella-shaped rotating dome with a pattern of colored dots on its interior. While observing the rotating dome, the subject turns a knob to indicate his perception of body rotation. The strength of circular vection is calculated by comparing the signals from the dome and the knob. The greater the false sense of circular vection, the more the subject is relying on visual information instead of otolith information.

STS-85 Commander Curtis L. Brown, Jr. smiles as he is assisted with his ascent/reentry flight suit by a suit technician in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building. He is a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force and is on his fourth space flight. Brown has served as the pilot of STS-47, STS-66 and STS-77. A test pilot, he has more than 5,000 hours of flight time in jet aircraft. Brown will have responsibility for the overall success of this space flight and will operate and maintain Discovery throughout the mission. This will include the performance of station-keeping with the Cryogenic Infrared Spectrometers and Telescopes for the Atmosphere-Shuttle Pallet Satellite-2 (CRISTA-SPAS-2) free-flyer payload and many different maneuvers required by different payloads. The primary payload aboard the Space Shuttle orbiter Discovery is the CRISTA-SPAS-2. Other payloads on the 11-day mission include the Manipulator Flight Demonstration (MFD), and Technology Applications and Science-1 (TAS-1) and

S79-25007 (13 Dec. 1978) --- Astronaut Robert L. Crippen, pilot for the first space shuttle orbital flight test (STS-1), is assisted by technicians prior to entering a water immersion facility (WIF) during a training session. The zero-gravity familiarization took place in the Johnson Space Centers training and test center (Building 260). The WIF afford one of two ways to simulate the feeling of weightlessness experienced during space extravehicular activity (EVA), the other being inside aircraft flying a parabolic curve. Crippen will be joined by astronaut John W. Young for the STS-1 flight.

Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong prepares to put on his helmet with the assistance of a spacesuit technician during suiting operations in the Manned Spacecraft Operations Building (MSOB) prior to the astronauts' departure to Launch Pad 39A. The three astronauts, Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., Neil A Armstrong and Michael Collins, will then board the Saturn V launch vehicle, scheduled for a 9:32 a.m. EDT liftoff, for the first manned lunar landing mission

STS112-345-028 (7-18 October 2002) --- The STS-112 crewmembers sleep on the middeck of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. Pictured are astronauts Sandra H. Magnus, David A. Wolf, Piers J. Sellers, mission specialists, and Jeffrey S. Ashby, mission commander.

Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-56) onboard photo of Mission Specialist Michael Foale working in the Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science (ATLAS-2). The ATLAS program was designed to measure the long term variability in the total energy radiated by the sun and determine the variability in the solar spectrum.

STS050-02-001 (9 July 1992) --- View showing Payload Specialists Bonnie Dunbar and Larry DeLucas in the aft section of the U. S. Microgravity Laboratory-1. Dunbar is preparing to load a sample in the Crystal Growth Furnace (CGF) Integrated Furnace Experiment Assembly (IFEA) in rack 9 of the Microgravity Laboratory. DeLucas is checking out the multipurpose Glovebox Facility.

STS112-347-001 (18 October 2002) --- A fish-eye lens on a 35mm camera records astronaut Jeffrey S. Ashby, STS-112 mission commander, at the commanders station on the forward flight deck of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. Ashby, attired in his shuttle launch and entry suit, looks over a checklist prior to the entry phase of the flight.

(12-22 Jan. 1997) --- Shortly after the docking of the Space Shuttle Atlantis and Russia's Mir Space Station, crewmembers from the respective spacecraft begin to transfer hardware from the Spacehab Double Module (DM) onto the Mir complex. In this scene, cosmonaut Valeri G. Korzun (second left) Mir-22 commander, along with astronauts Michael A. Baker (second right) commander, and Brent W. Jett, Jr., pilot, unstow a gyrodyne, a device used for attitude control, for transfer to Mir. Astronaut Marsha S. Ivins looks over a lengthy inventory of supplies to be transferred..

STS082-350-021 (11-21 Feb. 1997) --- On Discovery's middeck, astronaut Scott J. Horowitz, STS-82 pilot, works on one of the multi-layer insulation (MLI) patches to be used by two crew mates on an upcoming space walk to repair worn insulation on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST).

STS-100 Mission Specialists Scott Parazynski (left) and Yuri Lonchakov, who is with the Russian Aviation and Space Agency, look over equipment that will be used during their mission. They are taking part in a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT) at KSC, along with other crew members Commander Kent V. Rominger, Pilot Jeffrey S. Ashby and Mission Specialists Chris Hadfield, who is with the Canadian Space Agency, John L. Phillips and Umberto Guidoni, who is with the European Space Agency. The orbiter is also carrying the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello to the International Space Station. Raffaello carries six system racks and two storage racks for the U.S. Lab. Launch of mission STS-100 is scheduled for April 19 at 2 41 p.m. EDT from Launch Pad 39A

The first United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) was one of NASA's science and technology programs and provided scientists an opportunity to research various scientific investigations in a weightless environment inside the Spacelab module. It also provided demonstrations of new equipment to help prepare for advanced microgravity research and processing aboard the Space Station. The USML-1 flew in orbit for extended periods, providing greater opportunities for research in materials science, fluid dynamics, biotechnology, and combustion science. In this photograph, astronaut Carl Meade is reviewing the manual to activate the Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (GBA) inside the Spacelab module. The GBA for the USML-1 mission was a multipurpose facility that could help us answer important questions about the relationship between gravity and biology. This unique facility allowed scientists to study biological processes in samples ranging from molecules to small organisms. For example, s

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- STS-92 Commander Brian Duffy is seated at the controls of Discovery to take part in a simulated countdown. The countdown is part of Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT) activities that he and other crew members have been performing. STS-92 is scheduled to launch Oct. 5 at 9:38 p.m. EDT on the fifth flight to the International Space Station. It will carry two elements of the Space Station, the Integrated Truss Structure Z1 and the third Pressurized Mating Adapter. The mission is also the 100th flight in the Shuttle program

51B-14-038 (29 April-6 May 1985) --- Payload specialist Taylor G. Wang manipulates a 1.5 centimeter diameter sphere in the Drop Dynamics Module (DDM) in the science module aboard the earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Challenger. The photo was taken with a 35mm camera. Dr. Wang is principal investigator for the first-time-to-fly experiment, developed by his team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. This photo was one of the first released by NASA upon return to earth of the Spacelab 3 crewmembers.

The first United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) flew in orbit inside the Spacelab science module for extended periods, providing scientists and researchers greater opportunities for research in materials science, fluid dynamics, biotechnology (crystal growth), and combustion science. In this photograph, Astronaut Bornie Dunbar and Astronaut Larry DeLucas are conducting the Lower Body Negative Pressure (LBNP) experiment, which is to protect the health and safety of the crew and to shorten the time required to readapt to gravity when they return to Earth. When humans go into space, the lack of gravity causes many changes in the body. One change is that fluids normally kept in the lower body by gravity, shift upward to the head and chest. This is why astronauts' faces appear chubby or puffy. The change in fluid volume also affects the heart. The reduced fluid volume means that there is less blood to circulate through the body. Crewmembers may experience reduced blood flow to the

STS112-332-002 (12 October 2002) --- Astronaut Pamela A. Melroy, STS-112 pilot, assists astronaut David A. Wolf, mission specialist, with the final touches on his Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) spacesuit prior to the missions second session of extravehicular activity (EVA). Astronaut Piers J. Sellers (partially out of frame), mission specialist, joined Wolf on the spacewalk.

STS-82 Mission Commander Kenneth D. Bowersox makes some final adjustments to his launch and entry suit with assistance from a suit technician in the Operations and Checkout Building. This is his fourth space flight. He and the six other crew members will depart shortly for Launch Pad 39A, where the Space Shuttle Discovery awaits liftoff on a 10-day mission to service the orbiting Hubble Space Telescope (HST). This will be the second HST servicing mission. Four back-toback spacewalks are planned

Astronaut Janice Voss is opening the lid of the combustion chamber of the Combustion Module-1 during STS-94

STS030-10-002 (8 May 1989) --- STS-30 Mission Specialist Mary L. Cleave operates 8mm video camcorder at Fluids Experiment Apparatus 2 (FEA-2) (SK73-000102) unit located in aft middeck locker onboard Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103. Two 8mm video camcorders are positioned above FEA-2 unit to record experiment titled Floating Zone Crystal Growth and Purification . Rockwell International (RI) through its Space Transportation Systems Division, Downey, California, is engaged in a joint endeavor agreement (JEA) with NASA's Office of Commercial Programs in the field for floating zone crystal growth research. Utah State University Aggies decal appears on aft bulkhead above FEA-2 unit.

STS077-364-037 (19-29 May 1996) --- Astronaut John H. Casper, mission commander, mans the commanders station during rendezvous operations. During the flight, the six-member crew was involved in deployment and rendezvous operations with the Spartan 207/Inflatable Antenna Experiment (IAE) as well as the Passive Aerodynamically Stabilized Magnetically Damped Satellite (PAMS)/Satellite Test Unit (STU).

STS044-32-003 (24 Nov.-1 Dec. 1991) --- Astronaut F. Story Musgrave, STS-44 mission specialist, makes visual observations through Atlantis' hatch window. This photograph was among the first released by NASA following the eight day mission, dedicated to the Department of Defense.

S73-32840 (10 Sept. 1973) --- Scientist-astronaut Edward G. Gibson, Skylab 4 science pilot, turns on a switch on the control box of the S190B camera, one of the components of the Earth Resources Experiments Package (EREP). The single lens Earth Terrain Camera takes five-inch photographs. Behind Gibson is the stowed suit of astronaut Gerald P. Carr, commander for the third manned mission. The crew's other member is astronaut William R. Pogue, pilot. The training exercise took place in the Orbital Workshop one-G trainer at Johnson Space Center.

JSC2001-02185 (9 August 2001) --- Astronaut Duane G. Carey, STS-109 pilot, occupies the pilots station during a mission training session in the Space Vehicle Mockup Facility at the Johnson Space Center (JSC). Carey is attired in a training version of the shuttle launch and entry garment. STS-109 will be the 108th shuttle flight and the fourth Hubble Space Telescope (HST) servicing mission.

STS073-233-032 (20 October - 5 November 1995) --- Astronaut Michael E. Lopez-Alegria (left), STS-73 mission specialist, assists payload specialist Fred W. Leslie in an in-flight maintenance task involving the Fiber Support Droplet Combustion (FSDC) experiment. This new Glovebox investigation tests a technique for studying combustion in the weightless environment of space. The two joined five other crew members onboard the Space Shuttle Columbia for 16 days of in-space research in support of the United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-2) mission.

Expedition 13 Science Officer and Flight Engineer Jeffrey N. Williams climbs into the Soyuz capsule for his final check at building 254 of the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Sunday, March 26, 2006.

S66-57365 (13 Oct. 1966) --- Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., pilot for the Gemini-12 spaceflight, practices work tasks during zero-gravity training. He is standing in a mock-up of the Gemini spacecraft's adapter section onboard an Air Force KC-135 jet aircraft.

(22-30 Jan. 1992) --- Astronaut David C. Hilmers (right), STS-42 mission specialist, assists European Space Agency (ESA) payload specialist Ulf Merbold with the visual stimulator experiment on the Space Shuttle Discovery's middeck..

STS081-301-032 (12-22 Jan. 1997) --- Shortly after the docking of the Space Shuttle Atlantis and Russia's Mir Space Station, crewmembers from the respective spacecraft begin to transfer hardware from the Spacehab Double Module (DM) onto the Mir complex. In this scene, cosmonaut Valeri G. Korzun (second left) Mir-22 commander, along with astronauts Michael A. Baker (second right) commander, and Brent W. Jett, Jr., pilot, unstow a gyrodyne, a device used for attitude control, for transfer to Mir. Astronaut Marsha S. Ivins looks over a lengthy inventory of supplies to be transferred.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At SPACEHAB, in Cape Canaveral, Fla., members of the STS-101 and STS-106 crew take part in Crew Equipment Interface Test activities, learning about some of the equipment they will be working with, such as the Russian cargo crane Strela in front of them, on their mission to the International Space Station. From left are STS-106 Mission Specialist Richard Mastracchio, Mission Specialist Yuri Usachev of Russia, a SPACEHAB worker, Pilot Scott Horowitz, and Mission Specialists James Voss and Jeffrey Williams. Other STS-101 crew members not shown are Mission Specialists Mary Ellen Weber and Susan Helms. The crew will be responsible for preparing the Space Station for the arrival of the Zvezda Service Module, expected to be launched by Russia in July 2000. Also, the crew will conduct one space walk to perform maintenance on the Space Station and deliver logistics and supplies. This will be the third assembly flight for the Space Station. STS-101 is scheduled to l

S65-14547 (26 Feb. 1965) --- The Gemini-Titan 3 prime crew, astronauts Virgil I. Grissom (left), command pilot, and John W. Young, pilot, are shown during flight simulation test activity at the Mission Control Center.

STS096-409-010 (27 May - 6 June 1999) --- Astronaut Julie Payette works inside the Russian-built Zarya module as she joins other members of the STS-96 crew (out of frame) in applying final touches on the elements of the International Space Station (ISS), which was docked with Discovery. Payette, an alumnus of the 1996 class of astronaut trainees, represents the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

STS003-23-161 (24 March 1982) --- Astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton, STS-3 pilot, dons an olive drab inner garment which complements the space shuttle Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) spacesuit. Since there are no plans for an extravehicular activity (EVA) on the flight, Fullerton is just getting some practice time in the field as he is aboard the Earth-orbiting Columbia. He is in the middeck area of the vehicle. The photograph was taken with a 35mm camera by astronaut Jack R. Lousma, STS-3 commander.

S66-20016 (3 Feb. 1966) --- Astronaut David R. Scott holds maneuvering unit while suspended in a weightless state during extravehicular activity (EVA) training in a C-135 Air Force plane.

JSC2001-E-18351 (5 June 2001) --- Astronauts Patrick G. Forrester (left) assists Daniel T. Barry, both STS-105 mission specialists, in an Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) fit check in a Space Station Airlock Test Article (SSATA) in the Crew Systems Laboratory at the Johnson Space Center (JSC).

Astronaut David C. Hilmers conducts the Microgravity Vestibular Investigations (MVI) sitting in its rotator chair inside the IML-1 science module. When environmental conditions change so that the body receives new stimuli, the nervous system responds by interpreting the incoming sensory information differently. In space, the free-fall environment of an orbiting spacecraft requires that the body adapts to the virtual absence of gravity. Early in flights, crewmembers may feel disoriented or experience space motion sickness. MVI examined the effects of orbital flight on the human orientation system to obtain a better understanding of the mechanisms of adaptation to weightlessness. By provoking interactions among the vestibular, visual, and proprioceptive systems and then measuring the perceptual and sensorimotor reactions, scientists can study changes that are integral to the adaptive process. The IML-1 mission was the first in a series of Shuttle flights dedicated to fundamental material

STS088-329-025 (4-15 Dec. 1998) --- Astronauts Robert D. Cabana, commander (left), seated in the commanders station; Frederick W. Rick” Sturckow, pilot (right), seated in the pilot’s station; and Nancy J. Currie, mission specialist, on the flight deck of the Space Shuttle Endeavour. The three were involved with rendezvous operations with the Russian-built FGB Module (Zarya) at the time the photo was taken.

STS066-66-005 (3-14 Nov 1994) --- On the Space Shuttle Atlantis' flight deck, Jean-François Clervoy, mission specialist representing the European Space Agency (ESA), moves a platform for the recumbent seat device which was being evaluated for a future Space Shuttle flight. The platform is just part of the mid-deck arrangement designed to accommodate crew members when the Space Shuttle docks with Russia's Mir Space Station next year. Other crew members onboard Atlantis for the 11-day day Atmospheric Laboratory for Applications and Science (ATLAS-3) mission were astronauts Donald R. McMonagle, Curtis L. Brown, Jr., Ellen Ochoa, Scott E. Parazynski and Joseph R. Tanner.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- In Orbiter Processing Facility Bay 1, United Space Alliance (USA) technicians Dave Lawrence, at left, and James Cullop troubleshoot the orbiter Columbias outer hatch of the airlock, which failed to open during the recent STS-80 Space Shuttle mission. Mission Specialists Tamara E. Jernigan and Thomas D. Jones did not perform the missions planned two extravehicular activities (EVAs) or spacewalks because the hatch would not open on orbit. The spacewalks were to be part of the continuing series of EVA Development Flight Tests to evaluate equipment and procedures and to build spacewalking experience in preparation for the International Space Station.

Two Astronauts Compare Notes On Discovery'S Aft Flight Deck.

(22-30 March 1982) --- Astronaut Jack R. Lousma, STS-3 commander, wearing communications kit assembly mini headset, adjusts controls on Monodisperse Latex Reactor (MLR) experiment located in forward middeck lockers MF57H and MF57K. To reach MLR support electronics assy controls, Lousma squeezes in between forward lockers and Development Flight Instrument (DFI) unit on starboard bulkhead.

S69-39955 (16 July 1969) --- The crew of the Apollo 11 lunar landing mission arrives atop Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, during the Apollo 11 prelaunch countdown. Leading is astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, commander. He was followed by astronauts Michael Collins, command module pilot. Technician follows directly behind Armstrong and Collins.

STS079-354-001 (16-26 Sept. 1996) --- Astronaut Shannon W. Lucid gets a beverage at the galley on Russia's Mir Space Station Base Block. This photograph is one of fifteen 35mm frames (along with four 70mm frames) of still photography documenting the activities of NASA's STS-79 mission, which began with a September 16, 1996, liftoff from Launch Pad 39A the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and ended with a landing at KSC on September 26, 1996. Onboard for the launch were astronauts William F. Readdy, commander; Terrence W. Wilcutt, pilot; John E. Blaha, Jerome (Jay) Apt, Thomas D. Akers and Carl E. Walz, all mission specialists. On flight day 4, the crew docked with Mir. Lucid, who had spent six months aboard Mir, switched cosmonaut guest researcher roles with Blaha. The latter joined fellow Mir-22 crew members Valeri G. Korzun, commander, and Aleksandr Y. Kaleri, flight engineer.

S65-48989 (21 Aug. 1965) --- Astronauts L. Gordon Cooper Jr. (foreground), command pilot, and Charles Conrad Jr., pilot, in the Gemini-5 spacecraft in the white room atop Pad 19 moments prior to the closing of the hatches during the final minutes of the Gemini-5 prelaunch countdown.

STS035-19-019 (2-11 Dec 1990) --- Astronaut John M. (Mike) Lounge, STS 35 mission specialist makes a notation as he observes telescopes (out of frame) at work in Columbia's cargo bay. This aft flight deck scene was exposed with a 35mm camera.

STS046-05-019 (31 July-8 Aug 1992) --- The "blue-shift" crew members pose on the flight deck of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Atlantis. Left to right are Andrew M. Allen, pilot; Franco Malerba, representing the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and Swiss scientist Claude Nicollier, representing the European Space Agency (ESA).

Apollo 13 Astronauts Practice Moonwalk

S88-38355 (27 May 1988) --- Astronaut James P. Bagian lowers himself from the top of one of the full-fuselage trainer in JSC's Shuttle mockup and integration laboratory during a post-landing, over-the-top emergency egress test. Bagian, a M.D., and one of three mission specialists assigned to NASA STS-29 flight of the Discovery, is working with engineers evaluating egress using the new crew escape equipment that includes a parachute harness.

NM18-302-025 (March-July 1995) --- Onboard Mir's base block module cosmonaut Gennadiy M. Strekalov, flight engineer, prepares to check the air quality control and the propulsion system of the station. Strekalov told reporters at a July 18 press conference in Houston that even though he tried not to awaken astronaut Norman E. Thagard, who was asleep nearby, he was unable to keep from disturbing the cosmonaut researcher. He went on to point out that Thagard was always very cooperative and tolerant of such interruptions.

A worker (right) at Launch Pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, looks at the camera recently attached to the second stage of the Delta II rocket for the Mars Odyssey launch. The orbiter carries three science instruments THEMIS, the Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS), and the Mars Radiation Environment Experiment (MARIE) that will map the mineralogy and morphology of the Martian surface. The Mars Odyssey Orbiter is scheduled for launch on April 7, 2001

STS055-106-090 (26 April- 6 May 1993) --- Hans Schlegel, one of two STS-55 payload specialists representing the German Aerospace Research Establishment (DLR) onboard the Space Shuttle Columbia, finds plenty of room to spread out while participating in a Tissue experiment. Astronaut Bernard A. Harris, Jr., mission specialist, monitors an experiment in the background.

Astronaut Kathryn C. Thornton, payload commander for STS-73, works at the drop physics module (DPM) on the portside of the science module aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia in Earth orbit.

S65-23489 (23 March 1965) --- Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom, the command pilot of the Gemini-Titan 3 (GT-3) space flight, is shown in the GT-3 spacecraft just before the hatches are secured prior to launch. Grissom and his pilot, astronaut John W. Young, made three orbits of Earth during the GT-3 mission, in four hours and 53 minutes.

Apollo 17 mission commander Eugene Cernan inside the lunar module on the moon after his second moonwalk of the mission. Apollo 17 was the final mission of NASA's Apollo program, the enterprise that landed the first humans on the Moon. Launched at 12:33 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on December 7, 1972,

STS027-10-020a (2-6 Dec. 1988) --- Astronaut Guy S. Gardner, STS-27 pilot, converses with astronaut Robert L. Gibson (almost totally out of view at left) commander, as the two are seated at their respective stations on the flight deck of the Earth-orbiting space shuttle Atlantis.

S92-29406 (Feb 1992) --- Three mission specialists assigned to the STS-49 flight occupy temporary stations on the middeck of a Johnson Space Center (JSC) Shuttle trainer during a rehearsal of Endeavour's launch and entry phases. Left to right are astronauts Thomas D. Akers, Kathryn C. Thornton and Pierre J. Thuot. The three, along with four other NASA astronauts, will be aboard Endeavour in May for a week-long mission during which a satellite will be retrieved and boosted toward a higher orbit and extravehicular activity evaluations for Space Station Freedom assembly techniques will be conducted.

Various views of activities surrounding the Mir 24 crew's preparation for an intravehicular activity (IVA) in the Mir space station. Views include: Mir 24 crew in the Orlan suits in the Soyuz spacecraft (012-3,016). Commander Anatoly Solovyev climbs out of his suit in the Soyuz (014-5). Solovyev floats into the Base Block module (017). Underexposed views of Solovyev (left) and flight engineer Pavel Vinogradov in the Soyuz (018-20). Interior views of the airlock with IVA hardware (oxygen for suits) in view (021-2). Mir 24 crewmember climbing into his suit with his back to the camera (023). View 024 is blank. View 025 is of a Mir viewing portal. Portrait of Vinogradov in his suit, wearing his helmet (026). Guest researcher Michael Foale in the Soyuz, wearing his pressure suit (027-8). Interior views of the Soyuz (029-32). Solovyev and Vinogradov in the Base Block (033).

S89-27384 (5 Jan 1989) --- Astronauts James P. Bagian, left, and Robert C. Springer inspect a portion of the first stage of the Inertial Upper Stage (IUS-9) in a test cell of the KSC vertical processing facility. The two, along with three other NASA astronauts, will fly aboard Discovery and are responsible for the deployment of the tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS).

S65-60035 (6 Dec. 1965) --- The new light-weight spacesuit planned for possible use during the Gemini-7 mission is modeled by Fred R. Spross, Gemini Support Office, Crew Systems Division. The spacesuit weighs 16 pounds, including the aviator's crash helmet. The suit is designed so that it may be partially or completely removed during flight. It has two layers of material while the previously used Gemini spacesuit has four layers.

S65-20639 (18 March 1965) --- Astronaut Virgil I. Grissom, Gemini-Titan 3 command pilot, reclines on a couch in the Pad 16 ready room during preflight checks prior to going to Pad 19 for flight simulations in the Gemini-3 spacecraft. Joe Schmitt, suit technician from NASA s Manned Spacecraft Center Crew Systems Division, stands by to assist Grissom.

STS078-398-032 (20 June - 7 July 1996) --- Astronaut Susan J. Helms, payload commander, measures the distance between Jean-Jacques Faviers head and the luminous torque, used for the Canal and Otolith Interaction Study (COIS) on the Life and Microgravity Spacelab (LMS-1) mission. Favier, representing the French Space Agency (CNES), is one of two international payload specialists on the almost-17-day flight. This view shows the Voluntary Head Movement (VHM) segment of the experiment. The VHM is meant to characterize how the coordination of head and eye movement changes as a result of spaceflight. Since most vestibular functions are influenced by gravity, the COIS experiment is meant to measure response differences in microgravity.

Public Affairs Office (PAO) release print of activity documenting third free flight of Shuttle Orbiter 101 Spacecraft at DFRC, Edwards Air Force Base (EAFB), CA. Astronauts Haise and Fullerton arrive at the Mate-Demate Device (MDD) and greet technicians prior to ingress.

Christa McAuliffe Experiences Weightlessness. She represented the Teacher in Space Project and died when Challenger exploded during take-off on January 28, 1986.

Onboard Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-50) all work and no play make commander Richard (Dick) Richards and payload commander Bornie Dunbar take a break from their work in the United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML-1) responsibilities.

S73-19534 (September 1972) --- These three astronauts are the prime crewmen of the Apollo 17 lunar landing mission. They are Eugene A. Cernan (seated), commander; Ronald E. Evans (standing on right), command module pilot; and Harrison H. Schmitt, lunar module pilot. They are photographed with a Lunar Roving Vehicle trainer. Cernan and Schmitt will use an LRV during their exploration of the Taurus-Littrow landing site. The Apollo 17 Saturn V space vehicle is in the background. This picture was taken at Pad A, Launch Complex 39, Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

Astronaut Mae Jemison on Spacelab-J.

Portrait photographs of STS-11/41B Crewman Robert L. Stewart, wearing the Extravehicular Maneuvering Unit (EMU) with the Manned Manuevering Unit (MMU) attached, and without helmet.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At SPACEHAB, in Titusville, Fla., STS-101 crew members take part in a Crew Equipment Interface Test (CEIT). Here checking out the SPACEHAB Logistics Double Module are (left) Mission Specialists Mary Ellen Weber (Ph.D.), and (right) Edward Tsang Lu (Ph.D.). Other members of the crew taking part in the CEIT are Commander James Donald Halsell Jr., Pilot Scott J. "Doc" Horowitz (Ph.D.), and Mission Specialists Jeffrey N. Williams, and Yuri Malenchenko and Boris W. Morukov, who are with the Russian Space Agency. The primary objective of the STS-101 mission is to complete the initial outfitting of the International Space Station, making it fully ready for the first long-term crew. The seven-member crew will transfer almost two tons of equipment and supplies from SPACEHAB. Additionally, they will unpack a shipment of supplies delivered earlier by a Russian Progress space tug and begin outfitting the newly arrived Zvezda Service Module. Three astronauts will perfo

JSC2000-01440 (14 December 1999) --- Using both thumbs to signal success, astronaut Frank L. Culbertson. Jr., emerges from a training session in the nearby Soyuz trainer. Culbertson, currently visiting the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Russia, is in training as commander for Expedition Three. He was named to that positionin September of this year.

STS056-08-028 (8-17 April 1993) --- Astronaut Kenneth D. Cameron, mission commander, prepares to remove a camera before making exposures with it on Discovery's flight-deck. Cameron and four other NASA astronauts spent nine days in space supporting the Atlas 2 mission.

S65-22655 (14 April 1965) --- The Gemini-Titan 4 prime crew is shown aboard the NASA Motor Vessel Retriever in the Gulf of Mexico suiting up for water egress training. Astronaut James A. McDivitt (left) is the command pilot, and astronaut Edward H. White II is the pilot.

With the help of a suit technician, STS-91 Pilot Dominic L. Gorie dons his flight suit in the Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building prior to the crew walkout and transport to Launch Pad 39A. Gorie is on his first Shuttle mission. As a commander in the Navy, he flew combat missions in Operation Desert Storm and has earned a Distinguished Flying Cross as well as a masters degree in aviation systems. Along with backing up Precourt on the flight deck, Gorie will perform the final Shuttle-Mir undocking and flyaround. He will also assist with the transfer of materials to and from Mir and the photographic documentation of the space station. STS91 is scheduled to be launched on June 2 with a launch window opening around 6:10 p.m. EDT. The mission will feature the ninth and final Shuttle docking with the Russian space station Mir, the first Mir docking for Discovery, the first on-orbit test of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS), and the first flight of the new Space Shuttle super lightweig

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