- Henry Hartsfield
Infobox Astronaut
name =Henry Warren "Hank" Hartsfield, Jr.
caption = Henry Hartsfield
type =USAF /NASA Astronaut
status =Retired
nationality =American
date_birth =November 21 ,1933
place_birth =Birmingham, Alabama
occupation =Test Pilot
rank =Colonel ,USAF
selection =1966 USAF MOL Group, 1969 NASA Group 7
time =20d 02h 50m
mission =STS-4 ,STS-41-D ,STS-61-A
insignia =|Henry Warren "Hank" Hartsfield, Jr. (born
November 21 ,1933 ) is a retiredUnited States Air Force officer and a former USAF andNASA astronaut who logged over 480 hours in space.Personal
Hartsfield was born in
Birmingham, Alabama , and his mother, Mrs. Norma Hartsfield, still resides there. He is married to the former Judy Frances Massey ofPrinceton, North Carolina and has two daughters: Judy Lynn, May 29, 1958; and Keely Warren, May 14, 1959.Education
Graduated from
West End High School (Birmingham, Alabama) ; received a bachelor of science degree in Physics atAuburn University in 1954; performed graduate work in physics atDuke University and in astronautics at theAir Force Institute of Technology atWright-Patterson AFB ; and awarded a master of science degree in engineering science from theUniversity of Tennessee in 1971.USAF Experience
Hartsfield received his commission through the Reserve OfficerTraining Program (ROTC) at Auburn University. He entered the
U.S. Air Force in 1955, and his assignments included a tour with the 53rd Tactical Fighter Squadron in Bitburg, Germany. He is also a graduate of the USAF Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California, and was an instructor there prior to his assignment in 1966 to the USAFManned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program as an astronaut. After cancellation of the MOL Program in June 1969, he was reassigned to NASA. He has logged over 7,300 hours flying time -- of which over 6,150 hours are inthe following jet aircraft:F-86 , F-100,F-104 ,F-105 ,F-106 ,T-33 , and T-38.NASA experience
Hartsfield became a
NASA astronaut in September 1969. He was a member of the astronaut support crew forApollo 16 and served as a member of the astronaut support crew for theSkylab 2, 3, and 4 missions. Hartsfield retired in August 1977 from the United States Air Force with more than 22 years of active service but continues his assignment as a NASA astronaut in a civilian capacity. He was a member of the orbital flight test missions group of the astronaut office and was responsible for supporting the development of the Space Shuttle entry flight control system and its associated interfaces.Hartsfield served as backup pilot for
STS-2 andSTS-3 , Columbia's second and third orbital flight tests. A three flight veteran, Hartsfield served as pilot onSTS-4 in 1982, and was spacecraft commander onSTS-41-D in 1984, andSTS-61-A in 1985. Hartsfield was the pilot onSTS-4 , the fourth and final orbital test flight of the Shuttle Columbia, which launched fromKennedy Space Center ,Florida , on June 27, 1982. He was accompanied byThomas K. Mattingly (spacecraft commander) on this seven-day mission designed to: further verify ascent and entry phases of shuttle missions; perform continued studies of the effects of long-term thermal extremes on the Orbiter subsystems; and conduct a survey of Orbiter-induced contamination on the orbiter payload bay. Additionally, the crew operated several scientific experiments located in the Orbiter's cabin as well as in the payload bay. These experiments included the Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System (CFES), designed to investigate the separation of biological materials in a fluid according to their surface electrical charge. The crew is also credited with effecting an in-flight repair which enabled them to activate the first operational "Getaway Special" -- comprised of nine experiments that range from algae and duckweed growth in space to fruit fly and brine shrimp genetic studies. STS-4 completed 112 orbits of the earth before landing on a concrete runway atEdwards Air Force Base ,California , onJuly 4 ,1982 . Hartsfield was next spacecraft commander of STS 41-D which launched fromKennedy Space Center, Florida, on August 30, 1984. The crew included Mike Coats (pilot), Judy Resnik, Steve Hawley and Mike Mullane (mission specialists), and Charlie Walker (payload specialist). This was the maiden flight of the Orbiter Discovery. During the six-day mission the crew successfully activated the OAST-1 solar cell wing experiment, deployed three satellites, SBS-D, SYNCOM IV-2, and TELSTAR 3-C, operated the CFES-III experiment, the student crystal growth experiment, and photography experiments using theIMAX motion picture camera. The crew earned the name "Icebusters" when Hartsfield successfully removed a hazardous ice buildup from the Orbiter using the Remote Manipulator System. STS 41-D completed 96 orbits of the earthbefore landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on September 5, 1984. On his third flight, Hartsfield was spacecraft commander of STS 61-A, the WestGerman D-1Spacelab mission which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida,on October 30, 1985. His crew includedSteve Nagel (pilot),Jim Buchli ,Guy Bluford andBonnie Dunbar (mission specialists), andReinhard Furrer ,Ernst Messerschmid , andWubbo Ockels (payload specialists). The seven-day mission was the first with eight crew members, and the first Spacelab science mission planned and controlled by a foreign customer. More than 75 scientific experiments were completed in the areas of physiological sciences, materials processing, biology, and navigation. After completing 111 orbits of the earth, STS 61-A landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on November 6, 1985. With the completion of this flight, Hartsfield has logged 483 hours in space. From 1986-1987 Mr. Hartsfield served as the Deputy Chief of the Astronaut Office. In 1987, he became the Deputy Director for Flight Crew Operations, supervising the activities of the Astronaut Office and the Aircraft Operations Division at theJohnson Space Center . In 1989, he accepted a temporary assignment in the Office of Space Flight, NASA Headquarters,Washington D.C. There he served as Director of the Technical Integration and Analysis Division reporting directly to the Associate Administrator for Space Flight. In this assignment he was responsible for facilitating the integration of the Space Station and its unique requirements into the Space Shuttle systems. His office also served as a technical forum for resolving technical programmatic issues. In 1990, Mr. Hartsfield accepted another temporary assignment as the Deputy Manager for Operations, Space Station Projects Office, at theMarshall Space Flight Center ,Alabama . In that capacity he was responsible for the planning and management of Space Station Operations and Utilization Capability Development and operations activities including budget preparation. Later in that assignment he also acted as the Deputy Manager for the Space Station Projects Office. In 1991, Mr. Hartsfield accepted the position of the Man-Tended Capability (MTC) Phase Manager, Space Station Freedom Program and Operations (SSFPO), with a duty station at the Johnson Space Center. Reporting directly to the Deputy Director, SSFPO, he represented the Deputy Director in providing appropriate program guidance and direction to the Space Shuttle Program, and across the Space Station Freedom Program for all MTC phase mission unique activities to assure appropriate resolution of issues.In December 1993, Mr. Hartsfield accepted the position of Manager,
International Space Station Independent Assessment. In this capacity he reported directly to the Associate Administrator for Safety and Mission Assurance and managed and focused the oversight activities and assessment of the International Space Station Alpha Program.In September 1996, the scope of Mr. Hartsfield's work was expanded to include independent assessment of the programs and projects of the Human Exploration and Development of Space (HEDS) Enterprise and he was named Director, HEDS Independent Assurance.
Hartsfield retired from NASA in 1998 and then joined the executive ranks of Raytheon Company. [ [http://www.space.com/news/cs_051230_inductees.html News report, Space.com, December 30, 2005, accessed August 22, 2008] ] He retired from Raytheon in 2005.
Special honors
*Air Force Meritorious Service Medal
*General Thomas D. White Space Trophy for 1973 (1974)
*Alabama Aviation Hall of Fame (1983)
*Distinguished Civilian Service Award (DOD) (1982)
*NASA Distinguished Service Medals (1982,1988)
*NASA Space Flight Medals (1982, 1984, 1985)
*NASA Exceptional Service Medal (1988)
*Honorary Doctor of Science degree from Auburn University (1986) [ [http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/persons/astronauts/e-to-h/HartsfieldHW.txt NASA biography of Henry Hartsfield] ]
*Inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame (2006) [ [http://www.kennedyspacecenter.com/Induction2006/index.asp U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame 2006 Induction web page, accessed September 22, 2006] ] .References
External links
* [http://www.spacefacts.de/bios/astronauts/english/hartsfield_henry.htm Spacefacts biography of Henry Hartsfield]
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