- James Buchli
Infobox Astronaut
name =James Frederick Buchli
type =Astronaut
nationality =flagicon|United States American
date_birth =June 20 ,1945
place_birth =New Rockford, North Dakota
occupation =Engineer
rank =Colonel ,United States Marine Corps
selection =1978 NASA Group
time =20d 10h 25m
mission =STS-51-C ,STS-61-A ,STS-29 ,STS-48
insignia =James Frederick Buchli (Colonel, USMC, Ret.) is a former
NASA astronaut who flew on fourSpace shuttle missions.Personal data
Born
June 20 ,1945 , inNew Rockford, North Dakota , but also considersFargo, North Dakota , as his hometown. Buchli is married and has two grown children. Recreational interests includeskiing ,scuba diving ,fishing , andracquetball .Education
Graduated from Fargo Central High School, Fargo, North Dakota, in 1963; received a bachelor of science degree in
Aeronautical Engineering from theUnited States Naval Academy in 1967 and a master of science degree in Aeronautical Engineering Systems from theUniversity of West Florida in 1975.Organizations
Associate member of
Naval Academy Alumni ,American Legion ,Association of Space Explorers , andAmerican Geophysical Union .pecial Honors
Col. Buchli's awards include:
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NASA Space Flight Medal (four awards)*
NASA Exceptional Service Medal *
NASA Distinguished Service Medal *
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Combat Action Ribbon *
Presidential Unit Citation (United States) *
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* (with Silver Star)
Experience
Buchli received his commission in the
United States Marine Corps following graduation from theUnited States Naval Academy atAnnapolis, Maryland in 1967. He graduated from U.S. Marine Corps Basic Infantry Course and was subsequently sent to the Republic of Vietnam for a 1-year tour of duty, where he served as Platoon Commander, with the 9th Marine Regiment, and then as Company Commander and Executive Officer, "B" Company, 3rd Company,3rd Reconnaissance Battalion . He returned to the United States in 1969 for naval flight officer training atNaval Air Station Pensacola ,Florida , and spent the next 2 years assigned toVMFA-122 , at Marine Corps Base Kaneohe Bay,Hawaii , andMarine Corps Air Station Iwakuni ,Japan . In 1973, he proceeded to duty withVMFA-115 at Namphong,Thailand , and MCAS Iwakuni, Japan. Upon completing this tour of duty, he again returned to the United States and participated in the Marine Advanced Degree Program at theUniversity of West Florida . He was assigned subsequently toVMFA-312 at theMarine Corps Air Station Beaufort ,South Carolina , and in 1977, to the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School atNaval Air Station Patuxent River ,Maryland .He has logged over 4,200 hours flying time -- 4,000 hours in jet aircraft.
NASA experience
Buchli became a NASA astronaut in August 1979. He was a member of the support crew for
STS-1 andSTS-2 , and On-Orbit CAPCOM for STS-2. A veteran of four space flights, Buchli has orbited the earth 319 times, traveling 7.74 million miles in 20 days, 10 hours, 25 minutes, 32 seconds. He served as a mission specialist on STS-51C (24 January -27 January ,1985 ), STS-61A (30 October to6 November ,1985 ), STS-29 (13 March -18 March ,1989 ), and STS-48 (12 September -18 September ,1991 ). From March 1989 till May 1992 he also served as Deputy Chief of the Astronaut Office.On
1 September 1992 Buchli retired from the U.S. Marine Corps and the NASA Astronaut Office to accept a position as Manager, Space Station Systems Operations and Requirements with Boeing Defense and Space Group, Huntsville, Alabama. In April 1993, he was reassigned as Boeing Deputy for Payload Operations, Space Station Freedom Program. Buchli currently serves as Operations & Utilization Manager for Space Station, Boeing Defense and Space Group, Houston, Texas.pace flight experience
STS-51-C Discovery, was the first dedicated Department of Defense mission. Launched24 January ,1985 , from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, STS-51C performed its DOD mission which included deployment of a modified Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) vehicle from the Space Shuttle. Landing occurred on27 January 1985 , after slightly more than three days on orbit. Mission duration was 73 hours, 33 minutes, 27 seconds.STS-61-A Challenger (30 October to6 November ,1985 ) was a West German D-1 Spacelab mission, the first to carry eight crew members, the largest crew to fly in space, and the first in which payload activities were controlled from outside the United States. More than 75 scientific experiments were completed in the areas of physiological sciences, materials processing, biology, and navigation. Mission duration was 168 hours, 44 minutes, 51 seconds.STS-29 Discovery (13 March to18 March ,1989 ) was a highly successful five day mission during which the crew deployed a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, and performed numerous secondary experiments, including a space station "heat pipe" radiator experiment, two student experiments, a protein crystal growth experiment, and achromosome andplant cell division experiment. In addition, the crew took over 3,000 photographs of the earth using several types of cameras, including the IMAX 70mm movie camera. Mission duration was 119 hours, 39 minutes, 40 seconds.STS-48 Discovery (12 September to18 September ,1991 ) was a five day mission during which the crew deployed theUpper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) designed to provide scientists with their first complete data set on the upper atmosphere's chemistry, winds and energy inputs. The crew also conducted numerous secondary experiments ranging from growing protein crystals, to studying how fluids and structures react in weightlessness. Mission duration was 128 hours, 27 minutes; 34 seconds.Source [http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/buchli-jf.html]
External links
* [http://www.spacefacts.de/bios/astronauts/english/buchli_james.htm Spacefacts biography of James Buchli]
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