Michael A. Baker
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Michael Baker | |
---|---|
NASA astronaut | |
Rank | Captain, USN |
Time in space | 40d 4h 59m |
Selection | NASA Group 11 (1985) |
Missions | STS-43 STS-52 STS-68 STS-81 |
Mission insignia | |
Retirement | January 7, 2017[1] |
Michael Allen Baker (born October 27, 1953) is a retired captain in the United States Navy, former NASA astronaut, and the International Space Station Program Manager for International and Crew Operations, at NASA's Johnson Space Center. He is responsible for the coordination of program operations, integration and flight crew training and support activities with the International Partners.
Early life
Baker was born on October 27, 1953, in
After graduation, Baker completed flight training and earned his
He attended the
In 1983, he returned to the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School as an instructor. He was then assigned as the U.S. Navy exchange instructor at the
He has logged over 5,400 hours flying time in approximately 50 different types of airplanes, including tactical
NASA
Selected by NASA in June 1985, Baker became an astronaut in July 1986 upon completion of a one-year training and evaluation program.
Following the Challenger accident, Baker was assigned from January 1986 to December 1987 as a member of the team that was pursuing redesign, modification and improvements to the Shuttle Landing and Deceleration Systems, to include nosewheel steering, brakes, tires, and drag chute, in an effort to provide greater safety margins during landing and rollout. He was then assigned to the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory, where he was involved in the checkout and verification of the computer software and hardware interfaces for STS-26 (the return-to-flight mission) and subsequent flights.
Baker then served as an ascent, entry and orbit spacecraft communicator (
Between March and October 1995, he served as the Director of Operations for NASA at the
Space flights
A veteran of four
STS-43
STS-52 Space Shuttle
STS-68 Space Shuttle Endeavour launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on September 30, 1994. This flight was the second flight of the Space Radar Laboratory (SRL), which consists of a large radar called SIR-C/X-SAR (Shuttle Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar) and MAPS (Measurement of Air Pollution from Satellites). As part of NASA's Mission to Planet Earth, SRL was an international, multidisciplinary study of global environmental change, both natural and man-made. The primary objective was to radar map the surface of the Earth to help us understand the contributions of ecology, hydrology, geology, and oceanography to changes in our Planet's environment. Real-time crew observations of environmental conditions, along with over 14,000 photographs, aided in interpretation of the radar images. This SRL mission was a highly successful test of technology intended for long-term environmental and geological monitoring of planet Earth. Following 183 orbits of the Earth, the eleven-day mission concluded with a landing on Runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on October 11, 1994. Mission duration was 269 hours, 46 minutes, 10 seconds.[5]
STS-81 Space Shuttle Atlantis launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida on January 12, 1997. STS-81 was the fifth in a series of joint missions between the U.S. Space Shuttle and the Russian Space Station Mir and the second one involving an exchange of U.S. astronauts. In five days of docked operations more than three tons of food, water, experiment equipment and samples were moved back and forth between the two spacecraft. Following 160 orbits of the Earth the STS-81 mission concluded with a landing on Kennedy Space Center's Runway 33 ending a 3.9 million mile journey. Mission duration was 244 hours, 56 minutes.[6]
Post NASA
In January 2017, Baker left NASA to work for the private industry.[1] He currently resides in League City, Texas.
Honors
- Defense Superior Service Medal
- Legion of Merit
- Distinguished Flying Cross
- 2 Defense Meritorious Service Medals
- National Defense Service Medal
- 3 Navy Expeditionary Medals
- the Navy Unit Commendation
- 3 Meritorious Unit Commendations
- the Battle "E" Award
- NASA Distinguished Service Medal
- NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal
- NASA Exceptional Service Medal
- 4 NASA Space Flight Medals
- 2 Sea Service Awards
- the Overseas Service Award
- Named 1993 Outstanding University of Texas Alumnus
Organizations
- Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots
- Association of Naval Aviation
- the Tailhook Association
- Association of Space Explorers
- National Aeronautic Association
- Sierra Club
- Veterans of Foreign Wars
- Member of the Advisory Committee to the University of Texas College of Engineering, Aerospace Engineering Department.
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the
- ^ a b "Veteran Astronauts Retire from NASA". NASA. January 9, 2017.
- ^ a b c d e "Michael A. Baker (Captain, U.S. Navy, Ret., NASA Ret.)" (PDF). NASA. January 2017. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
- ^ Ryba, Jeanne (18 February 2010). "STS-43". Mission Archives. NASA. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
- ^ Ryba, Jeanne (31 March 2010). "STS-52". Mission Archives. NASA. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
- ^ Ryba, Jeanne (23 November 2007). "STS-68". Mission Archives. NASA. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
- ^ Ryba, Jeanne (23 November 2007). "STS-81". Mission Archives. NASA. Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.