Rick Husband

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Rick Husband
NASA astronaut
RankColonel, USAF
Time in space
25d 17h 33m
SelectionNASA Group 15 (1994)
MissionsSTS-96
STS-107
Mission insignia

Richard Douglas Husband (July 12, 1957 – February 1, 2003) was an American

Earth's atmosphere. He is also a recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor
.

Early life, education and training

Husband was born on July 12, 1957, in Amarillo, Texas.[1] At the age of 17, he earned his pilot's license while flying out of Tradewind Airport. Husband graduated with honors from Amarillo High School in 1975.

Husband earned a

Homestead Air Force Base next.[2]

U.S. Air Force career

Husband was assigned to a squadron at

George AFB, in Victorville, California in December 1985, where he became an F-4 instructor. By then he had accumulated 1000 hours of flying time.[2]
: 30, 32 

In December 1987, Husband was assigned to

F-15 Eagle. In the F-15 Combined Test Force, he was the program manager for the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229
increased performance engine, and also served as the F-15 Aerial Demonstration Pilot.

In June 1992, Husband was assigned to the Aircraft and Armament Evaluation Establishment at

Boscombe Down, England, as an exchange test pilot with the Royal Air Force
. At Boscombe Down, he was the Tornado GR1 and GR4 Project Pilot and served as a test pilot in the Hawk, Hunter, Buccaneer, Jet Provost, Tucano, and Harvard.

Husband logged over 3,800 hours of flight time in more than 40 different types of aircraft.[1]

NASA career

Husband was selected as an astronaut candidate by

Astronaut Office. He flew as pilot on STS-96 in 1999, and logged 235 hours and 13 minutes in space. Husband was later assigned to command the crew of STS-107
, which was launched early in 2003. Along with the rest of the STS-107 crew, Husband was killed upon reentry when the shuttle disintegrated over Texas.

Shuttle missions

Pilot (PLT) Rick D. Husband (left) and EVA Specialist Tamara E. Jernigan (right) during STS-96
  • STS-96 (May 27 to June 6, 1999) aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery was a 10-day mission during which the crew performed the first docking with the International Space Station and delivered four tons of logistics and supplies in preparation for the arrival of the first crew to live on the station early the following year. The mission was accomplished in 153 Earth orbits, traveling 4 million miles in 9 days, 19 hours and 13 minutes.
Commander (CDR) Rick D. Husband (left) and Payload Specialist (PS) Ilan Ramon (right) during STS-107
  • microgravity to gain insight into the environment of space and improve life on Earth as well as enable future space exploration. The mission ended on the morning of February 1 when the shuttle disintegrated upon reentry killing all crew members, including Husband (see Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
    ).


Awards and decorations

US Air Force Command Astronaut Badge
Defense Distinguished Service Medal (posthumous)
Meritorious Service Medal with two bronze oak leaf clusters
Aerial Achievement Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal
Congressional Space Medal of Honor (posthumous)
NASA Distinguished Service Medal (posthumous)
NASA Space Flight Medal (posthumous)
National Defense Service Medal
Air Force Longevity Service Award
with two oak leaf clusters
Air Force Training Ribbon

Two NASA Group Achievement Awards.[3][1]

Tributes

Statue of Rick Husband at Amarillo International Airport

Quotes

Husband describes how he became a shuttle commander having flown in only one other space flight:

  • "I was just at the right place at the right time."[2]: 105 

Rick Husband before his first flight:

  • "It [space] was just so incredibly adventurous and exciting to me. I just thought there was no doubt in my mind that is what I want to do when I grow up."

Husband was also well known for his faith, and in the last-request forms that astronauts fill out before every flight, he left his pastor a personal note:

  • "Tell them about
    Jesus; he's real to me."[7]

Personal life

Husband's Camaro on display at Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport

Husband's wife, Evelyn (born September 18, 1958), details her Christian life with Rick and his struggles to fulfill his lifelong dream to become an astronaut in the 2004 book High Calling: The Courageous Life and Faith of Space Shuttle Columbia Commander Rick Husband co-written with Donna VanLiere. The Husbands have two children: a daughter, Laura Marie (born October 5, 1990), and a son, Matthew (born August 3, 1995). Evelyn married Bill Thompson in January 2008 and was the keynote speaker for the memorial ceremony at the Astronaut Memorial "Space Mirror" at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, five years after the Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy.[8]

In popular culture

See also

  • Space science

References

  1. ^
    Houston, Texas: NASA. Archived
    (PDF) from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  2. ^
    ISBN 9780785261957
    .
  3. ^ "Husband bio". Archived from the original on 2016-03-15. Retrieved 2012-02-21.
  4. ^ "Space lab – The Ramon Foundation". ramonfoundation.org.il. Archived from the original on 2016-08-11.
  5. ^ Jason Rhian (21 March 2016). "ULA ATLAS V READY TO LAUNCH HEAVIEST PAYLOAD TO DATE WITH 'S.S. RICK HUSBAND'". Spaceflight Insider.
  6. IAU
    . Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  7. ^ RODRIGUES, JANETTE (5 February 2003). "Church remembers astronauts Anderson and Husband". Chron. Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  8. ^ Florida Today, February 1, 2008

External links

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