Astronaut Bruce McCandless II using a Manned Maneuvering Unit outside the United States Space Shuttle Challenger in 1984.

An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft. While generally reserved for professional space travelers, the terms are sometimes applied to anyone who travels into space, including scientists, politicians, journalists, and tourists.^[1][2]

Until 2002, astronauts were sponsored and trained exclusively by governments, either by the military, or by civilian space agencies. With the sub-orbital flight of the privately funded SpaceShipOne in 2004, a new category of astronaut was created: the commercial astronaut.

Definition[link]

Countries whose citizens have flown in space.

The criteria for what constitutes human spaceflight vary. The Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) Sporting Code for astronautics recognizes only flights that exceed an altitude of 100 kilometers (62 mi).^[3] In the United States, professional, military, and commercial astronauts who travel above an altitude of 50 miles (80 km)^[4] are awarded astronaut wings.

As of June 20, 2011, a total of 523 people from 38 countries^[5] have reached 100 km (62 mi) or more in altitude, of which 520 reached low Earth orbit or beyond.^[6][7] Of these, 24 people have traveled beyond Low Earth orbit, to either lunar or trans-lunar orbit or to the surface of the moon; three of the 24 did so twice: Jim Lovell, John Young and Eugene Cernan.^[8] The three astronauts who have not reached low Earth orbit are Joe Walker, Mike Melvill and Brian Binnie.

Under the U.S. definition, as of June 20, 2011, 529 people qualify as having reached space, above 50 miles (80 km) altitude. Of eight X-15 pilots who exceeded 50 miles (80 km) in altitude, only one exceeded 100 kilometers (about 62 miles).^[9] Space travelers have spent over 30,400 man-days (83 man-years) in space, including over 100 astronaut-days of spacewalks.^[9][10] As of 2008, the man with the longest cumulative time in space is Sergei K. Krikalev, who has spent 803 days, 9 hours and 39 minutes, or 2.2 years, in space.^[11][12] Peggy A. Whitson holds the record for the most time in space by a woman, 377 days.^[13]

Terminology[link]

English[link]

In the United States, Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and many other English-speaking nations, a professional space traveler is called an astronaut.^[14] The term derives from the Greek words ástron (ἄστρον), meaning "star", and nautes (ναύτης), meaning "sailor". The first known use of the term "astronaut" in the modern sense was by Neil R. Jones in his short story "The Death's Head Meteor" in 1930. The word itself had been known earlier. For example, in Percy Greg's 1880 book Across the Zodiac, "astronaut" referred to a spacecraft. In Les Navigateurs de l'Infini (1925) of J.-H. Rosny aîné, the word astronautique (astronautic) was used. The word may have been inspired by "aeronaut", an older term for an air traveler first applied (in 1784) to balloonists. An early use in a non-fiction publication is Eric Frank Russell's poem "The Astronaut" in the November 1934 Bulletin of the British Interplanetary Society.^[15]

The first known formal use of the term astronautics in the scientific community was the establishment of the annual International Astronautical Congress in 1950 and the subsequent founding of the International Astronautical Federation the following year.^[16]

NASA applies the term astronaut to any crew member aboard NASA spacecraft bound for Earth orbit or beyond. NASA also uses the term as a title for those selected to join its Astronaut Corps.^[17] The European Space Agency similarly uses the term astronaut for members of its Astronaut Corps.^[18]

Russian[link]

By convention, an astronaut employed by the Russian Federal Space Agency (or its Soviet predecessor) is called a cosmonaut in English texts.^[17] The word is an anglicisation of the Russian word kosmonavt (Russian: космонавт Russian pronunciation: [kəsmɐˈnaft]), one who works in space outside the Earth's atmosphere, a space traveler,^[19] which derives from the Greek words kosmos (κόσμος), meaning "universe", and nautes (ναύτης), meaning "sailor".

The Soviet Air Force pilot Yuri Gagarin was the first cosmonaut. Valentina Tereshkova, a Russian factory worker, was the first female cosmonaut, as well as arguably the first civilian cosmonaut (see below for a further discussion of civilians in space). On March 14, 1995, Norman Thagard became the first American to ride to space on board a Russian launch vehicle, and became the first "American cosmonaut".

Chinese[link]

Official English-language texts issued by the government of the People's Republic of China use astronaut while texts in Russian use космонавт (kosmonavt).^[20][21] In China, the term for cosmonaut is "yǔhángyuán" (宇航员, "sailing personnel in universe") and for astronaut is "hángtiānyuán" (航天员, "sailing personnel in sky") have long been used for astronauts. The phrase "tàikōng rén" (太空人, "spaceman") is often used in Taiwan and Hong Kong.

The term taikonaut is used by some English-language news media organizations for professional space travelers from China.^[22] The word has featured in the Longman and Oxford English dictionaries, the latter of which describes it as "a hybrid of the Chinese term taikong (space) and the Greek naut (sailor)"; the term became more common in 2003 when China sent its first astronaut Yang Liwei into space aboard the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft.^[23] This is the term used by Xinhua in the English version of the Chinese People's Daily since the advent of the Chinese space program.^[24] The origin of the term is unclear; as early as May 1998, Chiew Lee Yih (趙裡昱) from Malaysia, used it in newsgroups.^[25][26]

Other terms[link]

With the rise of space tourism, NASA and the Russian Federal Space Agency agreed to use the term "spaceflight participant" to distinguish those space travelers from professional astronauts on missions coordinated by those two agencies.

While no nation other than the Russian Federation (and previously the former the Soviet Union), the United States, and China has launched a manned spacecraft, several other nations have sent people into space in cooperation with one of these countries. Inspired partly by these missions, other synonyms for astronaut have entered occasional English usage. For example, the term spationaut (French spelling: spationaute) is sometimes used to describe French space travelers, from the Latin word spatium or "space", and the Malay term angkasawan was used to describe participants in the Angkasawan program. In Hungary the word describing astronauts is űrhajós (from űr meaning "space" and hajós meaning "sailor".)

Space travel milestones[link]

Yuri Gagarin, first human in space (1961)

Valentina Tereshkova, 1963 first woman in space.

Neil Armstrong, first person to walk on the moon (1969).

The first human in space was Soviet Yuri Gagarin, who was launched into space on April 12, 1961 aboard Vostok 1 and orbited around the Earth for 108 minutes. The first woman in space was Russian Valentina Tereshkova, who launched on June 16, 1963 aboard Vostok 6 and orbited Earth for almost three days.

Alan Shepard became the first American and second person in space on May 5, 1961 on a 15-minute sub-orbital flight. The first American woman in space was Sally Ride, during Space Shuttle Challenger's mission STS-7, on June 18, 1983.^[27] In 1992 Mae Jemison became the first African American woman to travel in space aboard STS-47.

The first manned mission to orbit the moon, Apollo 8, included American William Anders who was born in Hong Kong, making him the first Asian-born astronaut in 1968. In April 1985, Taylor Wang became the first ethnic Chinese person in space.^[28][29] On 15 October 2003, Yang Liwei became China's first astronaut on the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft.

The Soviet Union, through its Intercosmos program, allowed people from other "socialist" (i.e. Warsaw Pact and other Soviet-allied) countries to fly on its missions. An example is Czechoslovak Vladimír Remek, the first cosmonaut from a country other than the Soviet Union or the United States, who flew to space in 1978 on a Soyuz-U rocket.^[30] On July 23, 1980, Pham Tuan of Vietnam became the first Asian in space when he flew aboard Soyuz 37.^[31]

Also in 1980, Cuban Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez became the first person of Hispanic and black African descent to fly in space, Guion Bluford became the first African American to fly into space. The first person born in Africa to fly in space was Patrick Baudry, in 1985.^[32][33] In 1985, Saudi Arabian Prince Sultan Bin Salman Bin AbdulAziz Al-Saud became the first Arab Muslim astronaut in space.^[34] In 1988, Abdul Ahad Mohmand became the first Afghan to reach space, spending nine days aboard the Mir space station.^[35]

With the larger number of seats available on the Space Shuttle, the U.S. began taking international astronauts. In 1983, Ulf Merbold of West Germany became the first non-US citizen to fly in a US spacecraft. In 1984, Marc Garneau became the first of 8 Canadian astronauts to fly in space (through 2010).^[36] In 1985, Rodolfo Neri Vela became the first Mexican-born person in space.^[37] In 1991, Helen Sharman became the first Briton to fly in space.^[38] In 2002, Mark Shuttleworth became the first citizen of an African country to fly in space, as a paying spaceflight participant.^[39] In 2003, Ilan Ramon became the first Israeli to fly in space, although he died during a re-entry accident.

Age milestones[link]

The youngest person to fly in space is Gherman Titov, who was 25 years old when he flew Vostok 2. (Titov was also the first person to suffer space sickness).^[40][41] The oldest person who has flown in space is John Glenn, who was 77 when he flew on STS-95.^[42]

Duration and distance milestones[link]

The longest stay in space thus far has been 438 days, by Russian Valeri Polyakov.^[9] As of 2006, the most spaceflights by an individual astronaut is seven, a record held by both Jerry L. Ross and Franklin Chang-Diaz. The farthest distance from Earth an astronaut has traveled was 401,056 km (249,205 mi), when Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise went around the Moon during the Apollo 13 emergency.^[9]

Civilian and non-government milestones[link]

Depending on the exact definition of 'civilian', the first civilian in space was either Valentina Tereshkova^[43] aboard Vostok 6 (she also became the first woman in space on that mission) or Joseph Albert Walker^[44][45] on X-15 Flight 90 a month later. Tereshkova was only honorarily inducted into the USSR's Air Force, which had no female pilots whatsoever at that time. Joe Walker had joined the US Army Air Force but was not a member during his flight. The first people in space who had never been a member of any country's armed forces were both Konstantin Feoktistov and Boris Yegorov aboard Voskhod 1.

The first non-governmental space traveler was Byron K. Lichtenberg, a researcher from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who flew on STS-9 in 1983.^[46] In December 1990, Toyohiro Akiyama became the first paying space traveler as a reporter for Tokyo Broadcasting System, a visit to Mir as part of an estimated $12 million (USD) deal with a Japanese TV station, although at the time, the term used to refer to Akiyama was "Research Cosmonaut".^[47][48][49] Akiyama suffered severe space-sickness during his mission, which affected his productivity.^[48]

The first self-funded space tourist was Dennis Tito on board the Russian spacecraft Soyuz TM-3 on 28 April 2001.

Self-funded travelers[link]

The first person to fly on an entirely privately funded mission was Mike Melvill, piloting SpaceShipOne flight 15P on a sub-orbital journey, although he was a test pilot employed by Scaled Composites and not an actual paying space tourist.^[50][51] Seven others have paid to fly into space:

1. Dennis Tito (American): April 28 – May 6, 2001 (ISS)
2. Mark Shuttleworth (South African): April 25 – May 5, 2002 (ISS)
3. Gregory Olsen (American): October 1–11, 2005 (ISS)
4. Anousheh Ansari (Iranian / American): September 18–29, 2006 (ISS)
5. Charles Simonyi (Hungarian / American): April 7–21, 2007 (ISS), March 26 – April 8, 2009 (ISS)
6. Richard Garriott (American): October 12–24, 2008 (ISS)
7. Guy Laliberté (Canadian): September 30, 2009 – October 11, 2009 (ISS)

Training[link]

The first NASA astronauts were selected for training in 1959.^[52] Early in the space program, military jet test piloting and engineering training were often cited as prerequisites for selection as an astronaut at NASA, although neither John Glenn nor Scott Carpenter (of the Mercury Seven) had any university degree, in engineering or any other discipline at the time of their selection. Selection was initially limited to military pilots.^[53][54] The earliest astronauts for both America and Russia tended to be jet fighter pilots, and were often test pilots.

Once selected, NASA astronauts go through 20 months of training in a variety of areas, including training for extra-vehicular activity in a facility such as NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory.^[1][53] Astronauts-in-training may also experience short periods of weightlessness in aircraft called the "vomit comet", the nickname given to a pair of modified KC-135s (retired in 2000 and 2004 respectively, and replaced in 2005 with a C-9) which perform parabolic flights.^[52] Astronauts are also required to accumulate a number of flight hours in high-performance jet aircraft. This is mostly done in T-38 jet aircraft out of Ellington Field, due to its proximity to the Johnson Space Center. Ellington Field is also where the Shuttle Training Aircraft is maintained and developed, although most flights of the aircraft are done out of Edwards Air Force Base.

NASA candidacy requirements[link]

• Be citizens of the United States.^[52][55]
• Pass a strict physical examination, and have a near and distant visual acuity correctable to 20/20 (6/6). Blood pressure, while sitting, must be no greater than 140 over 90.

Commander and Pilot[link]

• A bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics is required.
• At least 1,000 hours flying time as pilot-in-command in jet aircraft. Experience as a test pilot is desirable.
• Height must be 5 ft 2 in to 6 ft 2 in (1.58 to 1.88 m).
• Distant visual acuity must be correctable to 20/20 in each eye.
• The refractive surgical procedures of the eye, PRK (Photorefractive keratectomy) and LASIK, are now allowed, providing at least 1 year has passed since the date of the procedure with no permanent adverse after effects. For those applicants under final consideration, an operative report on the surgical procedure will be requested.

Mission Specialist[link]

• A bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science or mathematics, as well as at least three years of related professional experience (graduate work or studies) and an advanced degree (master's degree = 1 year or a doctoral degree = 3 years)
• Applicant's height must be 5 ft 2 in to 6 ft 4 in (1.57 to 1.93 m).

Mission Specialist Educator[link]

Mission Specialist Educators Lindenberger, Arnold, and Acaba during a parabolic flight.

• Bachelor's degree with teaching experience, including work at the kindergarten through 12th grade level. Advanced degree not required, but is desired.^[56]

Mission Specialist Educators, or "Educator Astronauts", were first selected in 2004, and as of 2007, there are three NASA Educator astronauts: Joseph M. Acaba, Richard R. Arnold, and Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger.^[57][58] Barbara Morgan, selected as back-up teacher to Christa McAuliffe in 1985, is considered to be the first Educator astronaut by the media, but she trained as a mission specialist.^[59] The Educator Astronaut program is a successor to the Teacher in Space program from the 1980s.^[60][61]

Health risks of space travel[link]

Astronauts are susceptible to a variety of health risks including decompression sickness, barotrauma, immunodeficiencies, loss of bone and muscle, orthostatic intolerance due to volume loss, sleep disturbances, and radiation injury. A variety of large scale medical studies are being conducted in space via the National Space and Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) to address these issues. Prominent among these is the Advanced Diagnostic Ultrasound in Microgravity Study in which astronauts (including former ISS commanders Leroy Chiao and Gennady Padalka) perform ultrasound scans under the guidance of remote experts to diagnose and potentially treat hundreds of medical conditions in space. This study's techniques are now being applied to cover professional and Olympic sports injuries as well as ultrasound performed by non-expert operators in medical and high school students. It is anticipated that remote guided ultrasound will have application on Earth in emergency and rural care situations, where access to a trained physician is often rare.^[62][63][64]

Insignia[link]

In Russia, cosmonauts are awarded Pilot-Cosmonaut of the Russian Federation upon completion of their missions, often accompanied with the award of Hero of the Russian Federation. This follows the practice established in the Soviet Union.

At NASA, those who complete astronaut candidate training receive a silver lapel pin. Once they have flown in space, they receive a gold pin. U.S. astronauts who also have active-duty military status receive a special qualification badge, known as the Astronaut Badge, after participation on a spaceflight. The United States Air Force also presents an Astronaut Badge to its pilots who exceed 50 miles (80 km) in altitude.

Space Mirror Memorial

Deaths[link]

Eighteen astronauts (fourteen men and four women) have lost their lives during four space flights. By nationality, they are 13 Americans (including one with dual Indian citizenship), four Russians (Soviet Union), and one Israeli.

Eleven people (all men) have lost their lives training for spaceflight: eight Americans and three Russians. Six of these were in crashes of training jet aircraft, one drowned during water recovery training, and four were due to fires in pure oxygen environments.

The Space Mirror Memorial, which stands on the grounds of the John F. Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, commemorates the lives of the men and women who have died during spaceflight and during training in the space programs of the United States. In addition to twenty NASA career astronauts, the memorial includes the names of a U.S. Air Force X-15 test pilot, a U.S. Air Force officer who died while training for a then-classified military space program, and a civilian spaceflight participant.

See also[link]

	Spaceflight portal
	Space portal
	Solar System portal
	Astronomy portal

References[link]

External links[link]

Look up cosmonaut, spationaut, astronaut, or taikonaut in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Astronauts

• NASA: How to become an astronaut 101
• List of International partnership organizations
• Encyclopedia Astronautica: Phantom cosmonauts
• collectSPACE: Astronaut appearances calendar
• spacefacts Spacefacts.de
• Manned astronautics: facts and figures
• Astronaut Candidate Brochure online

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Professor Green
Green in 2011
Background information
Birth name	Stephen Paul Manderson
Born	27 November 1983 (1983-11-27) (age 28) Hackney, East London, England
Genres	Grime, Hip hop, Rap
Occupations	Rapper
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	2004–present
Labels	The Beats (2006–08) Virgin (2010–present)
Associated acts	Orelsan, Plan B, Ed Drewett, Lily Allen,Maverick Sabre, Example, The Streets, Game, Labrinth, Emeli Sandé, Johnny Truant, Adam Deacon, Tinchy Stryder, Tinie Tempah, Devlin, Giggs, Chipmunk, The Saturdays, Fink, The ThundaCatz, Luciana
Website	professorgreen.co.uk

Stephen Paul Manderson (born on 27 November 1983), better known by his stage name Professor Green, is an English rapper. He was signed to The Beats, a record label run by Mike Skinner and Ted Mayhem, until 12 February 2008, when the label terminated. He rose to success upon winning the inaugural JumpOff MySpace £50,000 battle rap tournament in July 2008. Following this in 2009, Manderson worked with Lily Allen on her 2009 concert tour.

In 2006 he released his first mixtape, Lecture #1. After his first record label, The Beats, went under he produced on his own an EP called The Green EP. After he toured with Lily Allen he was signed to Virgin Records and released "I Need You Tonight", based around INXS's "Need You Tonight" through the label.^[1] He also joined up with Lily Allen in "Just Be Good To Green" which is based around The SOS Band's "Just Be Good to Me".

Green released his debut album, Alive Till I'm Dead, on 19 July 2010, which features guest vocals from Lily Allen, Emeli Sandé, Fink, Labrinth and Example, as well as The Streets, who used to own The Beats.

Early and personal life[link]

Manderson was born in Hackney, East London on 27 November 1983.^[2] and was raised by his grandmother, Patricia, from the age of one on the Northwold Estate. His father, Peter, committed suicide in 2008 in Brentwood, Essex. Green has stated previously he feels his father's death has made him a better person, saying: "I'd had a turbulent relationship with my dad. He was always in and out of my life and I was raised by my grandmother Patricia. Mum, who had me at 16, was there for the most part but my grandmother was the most influential. I last saw my dad alive on my 18th birthday. He came over to see me but after that we just stopped talking. There was no real reason. He hanged himself and I had to go and identify the body in the morgue." Manderson also talked about his father's death in the song "Goodnight" from the album "Alive Till I'm Dead" and about the problems with his family in "Read All About It" from the album "At Your Inconvenience".

Manderson said he "fell in to rapping accidentally" as he was at a party at a friend's house, where everyone was freestyling, and he got put on the spot and he said it worked for him. Then, on seeing a flyer for a freestyle night called LyricPad, he decided to go. Despite having no experience freestyling, he won. After going to LyricPad again the next month, a scout from JumpOff spotted him. From there he battled and won every week, eventually becoming Champion. As of June 2011, he remains the only MC to win seven times in a row, a feat he accomplished twice. At JumpOff, Mike Skinner from The Streets saw and signed Manderson up to his record label, The Beats, although Manderson is never very complimentary when asked about his experiences there. Manderson gained the alias of 'Professor Green', the 'Green' part derives from the slang of cannabis, and he continued to sell cannabis until he was signed to The Beats. He gained the name Professor as he was very intelligent, although dropping out of school; despite having been offered a place at St. Paul's School in Barnes, he decided instead to go to a comprehensive in Tottenham.^[3]

On 23 May 2009 Manderson was attacked with the neck of a broken bottle in the Cargo nightclub in Shoreditch, East London. Ironically, the wound overlapped his tattoo of the word 'Lucky' located on the left of his neck. His assailant was later convicted of the crime and sentenced to eight years in prison.^[4]

It emerged in December 2011 that Manderson is dating Made in Chelsea's Millie Mackintosh.^[5]

Career history[link]

[edit] 2010–11: Alive Till I'm Dead

He confirmed his debut album's title was "Alive Till I'm Dead" on his official MySpace. The first single off the album was produced by The ThundaCatz and called "I Need You Tonight", which was released on 12 April 2010. It samples the 1987 hit from INXS 'Need You Tonight'. It peaked at #3 in the UK, and #15 in Ireland. The single was also certificated silver status in the United Kingdom.

He released his second single 'Just Be Good to Green', on 11 July 2010 in the UK. The single features British singer Lily Allen. It became a top 5 hit in the UK, a top 20 hit in Ireland and on the European Hot 100 Singles. It also peaked at #32 in New Zealand and #49 in Australia. The song samples 'Just Be Good To Me' by the SOS Band.

His album was released a week later, and peaked at #2 in the UK and #18 in Ireland. He released 'Monster' as the third single from the album. The track features UK rapper Example (Elliot Gleave). Released on 3 October 2010 the single became a top 30 hit on the UK Singles Chart. His album has been certificated Gold with sales of over 100,000 in the United Kingdom.

On 10 September 2010, Professor Green joined Lily Allen on stage at Wembley Stadium whilst supporting Muse, to perform her number one hit 'Smile', and 'Just Be Good To Green'.^[6]

On 19 October 2010 Manderson released the video for his next single 'Jungle' which features Maverick Sabre. It was released on 3 January 2011 and reached #33 in the UK Singles Chart.

On 8 December 2010, a feud erupted on social networking site Twitter between Green and fellow grime artist Wiley. The argument arose when Wiley said that Green would not exist if it were not for the success of American rapper Eminem, adding that he himself was a superior artist to Green. In retribution Green responded by saying '"I will always be a fan, but that's not to say I won't s**t all over you. It's not a problem for me." This then escalated into a larger argument before Green attempted to defuse the situation, to little avail.^[7]

Green appeared on Soccer AM where he was challenged to a rap battle by Tubes, after several starting spits, Green said "I'm the Professor, the one that you don't wanna test, Tubes is about as smart as the Soccerette". This got a big reaction from everyone in the studio.

Green is also UK Ambassador for SportLifestyle brand Puma, focusing on the fashion and lifestyle side of the brand.

[edit] 2011–2012: At Your Inconvenience

Professor Green's second album is titled At Your Inconvenience and was released on 31 October 2011.^[8] The title track "At Your Inconvenience" was played by Zane Lowe on BBC Radio 1 on 13 July 2011.^[9] That track was released as a promotional single only. The first official single "Read All About It" which features vocals from Emeli Sandé was released on 23 October 2011.On 30 October it reached number 1.^[10]. The second single from the album is set to be 'Never Be A Right Time' which has guest vocals from Ed Drewett. The third single released is 'Remedy' featuring Ruth-Anne Cunningham.

[edit] 2012–present: New Album

Professor Green has stated via Twitter he is already recording his third solo album. He has expressed interest to work with Lily Allen, Ed Sheeran and Emeli Sande once more, as well as Lana Del Rey exclusively being asked and agreeing to work on the album with Green. Possible producers so far for the album, includes Mike Skinner, Paul Wilson of Slipknot, Ishi, Pharrell Williams and Skrillex.^[11][12][13]

Discography[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

• BT Digital Music Awards 2010
  • Breakthrough Artist of the Year – Won
  • Best Newcomer – Nominated
• MTV Europe Music Awards 2010
  • Best Push Act
• MOBO Awards 2010
  • Best Newcomer – Nominated
  • Best Song - I Need You Tonight - Nominated
  • Best Hip Hop/Grime Act - Won
• MP3 Awards 2010
  • Radio/ Charts/ Downloads - Just Be Good To Green – Nominated
• Urban Music Awards 2010
  • Best Newcomer – Nominated
  • Best Hip-Hop Act – Nominated
  • Best Song - I Need You Tonight – Nominated
• NME Awards 2011
  • Best Dancefloor Filler - Jungle – Won

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Professor Green on Myspace

Chris Austin Hadfield
CSA Astronaut
Nationality	Canadian
Status	Active
Born	(1959-08-29) 29 August 1959 (age 52) Sarnia, Ontario
Other occupation	Test pilot
Rank	Colonel, RCAF
Time in space	20d 02h 02m
Selection	1992 CSA Group
Total EVAs	2
Total EVA time	14 hours 50 minutes
Missions	STS-74, STS-100
Mission insignia

Chris Austin Hadfield, O.Ont, MSC, CD (born 29 August 1959) is a Canadian astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) who was the first Canadian to walk in space. Hadfield has flown two space shuttle missions, STS-74 in 1995 and STS-100 in 2001. He has served as CAPCOM for both Space Shuttle and International Space Station (ISS) expeditions. He is currently training for a long duration stay on board the ISS, which will include command of Expedition 35 in 2012–13. He will be the first Canadian to command the ISS.^[1] He is enthusiastic about the prospects for a manned mission to Mars, and when asked if he would consider a one-way journey to Mars to be the first to visit, he said "I would be honoured to be given the opportunity."^[2]

Personal life[link]

Chris Hadfield was born in Sarnia, Ontario. His parents are Roger and Eleanor Hadfield who currently reside in Milton, Ontario. Hadfield was raised on a corn farm in southern Ontario and became interested in flying at a young age—from his own words in the interview to STRF.RU, he came to the idea of being astronaut when he was nine on the day of Apollo moon landing, which he had seen on TV then. Hadfield is married to his high-school girlfriend Helene Hadfield, and they have three adult children together.

Education[link]

Chris graduated as an Ontario Scholar from Milton District High School in 1977. After graduating from high school he went on to earn a bachelor degree in mechanical engineering at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario in 1982. Hadfield conducted post-graduate research on aviation systems at the University of Tennessee in 1993.

Special honours and affiliations[link]

Chris Hadfield is the recipient of numerous awards and special honours. These include the 1988 Liethen-Tittle Award (top pilot graduate of the USAF Test Pilot School) and U.S. Navy Test Pilot of the Year (1991). He received an honorary Doctorate of Engineering from the Royal Military College (1996). Hadfield is a member of the Order of Ontario (1996). He also received an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Trent University (1999). Chris has also received Vanier Award (2001), Meritorious Service Cross (2001), NASA Exceptional Service Medal (2002) and the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal (2003). He was inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame (2005) and Commemorated on Royal Canadian Mint silver and gold coins for his spacewalk to install Canadarm2 on the International Space Station (2001).

As an Air Cadet, he earned a glider pilot scholarship at age 15 and a powered pilot scholarship at age 16.

His affiliations include the Royal Military College Club, Society of Experimental Test Pilots, Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute, honorary patron of Lambton College, trustee of Lakefield College School, Board member of the International Space School Foundation, executive with the Association of Space Explorers.

Sarnia Airport was renamed in his honour in 1997.^[3]

Military experience[link]

Hadfield joined the Canadian Forces in May 1978. He spent two years at Royal Roads Military College, in Victoria, British Columbia followed by two years at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario where he received a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering (with honors) in 1982. Hadfield underwent basic flight training for the Royal Canadian Air Force at CFB Portage La Prairie in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba for which he was named top pilot in 1980. In 1983, he took honors as the overall top graduate from Basic Jet Training at CFB Moose Jaw in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan and in 1984–1985, he trained as a fighter pilot at CFB Cold Lake in Cold Lake, Alberta on CF-5s and CF-18s.

For the next three years Hadfield flew CF-18s for the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) with 425 Squadron, during which time he flew the first CF-18 intercept of a Soviet Tupolev Tu 95 "Bear" aircraft. He attended the United States Air Force (USAF) Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, in California, and upon graduation, served as an exchange officer with the U.S. Navy at Strike Test Directorate at the Patuxent River Naval Air Station. His accomplishments from 1989 to 1992 included testing the F/A-18 and A-7 aircraft; performing research work with NASA on pitch control margin simulation and flight; completing the first military flight of F/A-18 enhanced performance engines; piloting the first flight test of the National Aerospace Plane external burning hydrogen propulsion engine; developing a new handling qualities rating scale for high angle-of-attack test; and participating in the F/A-18 out-of-control recovery test program. In total, Hadfield has flown over 70 different types of aircraft.

NASA experience[link]

Chris Hadfield in 2012

Chris Hadfield was selected to become one of four new Canadian astronauts from a field of 5,330 applicants in June 1992. Three of those 4 (Dafydd Williams, Julie Payette and Hadfield) have flown in space. Hadfield was assigned by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) to the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas in August of the same year, where he addressed technical and safety issues for Shuttle Operations Development, contributed to the development of the glass shuttle cockpit, and supported shuttle launches at the Kennedy Space Center, in Florida. In addition, Hadfield was NASA's Chief CAPCOM, the voice of mission control to astronauts in orbit, for 25 space shuttle missions. From 1996 to 2000, he represented CSA astronauts and coordinated their activities as the Chief Astronaut for the CSA.^[4]

Chris Hadfield was the Director of Operations for NASA at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonauts Training Center (GCTC) in Star City, Russia from 2001 until 2003. Some of his duties included coordination and direction of all International Space Station crew activities in Russia, oversight of training and crew support staff, as well as policy negotiation with the Russian Space Program and other International Partners. He also trained and became fully qualified to be a flight engineer cosmonaut in the Soyuz TMA spacecraft, and to perform spacewalks in the Russian Orlan spacesuit.

Hadfield is a civilian CSA astronaut, having retired as a Colonel from the Canadian Air Force in 2003 after 25 years of military service. He was Chief of Robotics for the NASA Astronaut Office at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas from 2003–2006 and was Chief of International Space Station Operations from 2006–2008. In 2008 and 2009, Hadfield trained as a back-up to Robert Thirsk on the Expedition 21 mission.^[5] In May 2010, Hadfield served as the commander of the NEEMO 14 mission aboard the Aquarius underwater laboratory, living and working underwater for fourteen days.^[6][7] NASA has announced that Hadfield will become the first Canadian commander of the International Space Station, leading Expedition 35, when he blasts off in December 2012.^[8]

Space flights[link]

STS-74[link]

Chris Hadfield served as Mission Specialist 1 on STS-74 in November 1995. It was NASA's second space shuttle mission to rendezvous and dock with the Russian Space Station Mir. During the flight, the crew of Space Shuttle Atlantis attached a five-tonne docking module to Mir and transferred over 1,000 kg of food, water, and scientific supplies to the cosmonauts. Hadfield flew as the first Canadian to operate the Canadarm in orbit, and the only Canadian ever to board Mir.^[4]

STS-100[link]

Hadfield spacewalking during the STS-100 mission

In April 2001 Hadfield served as Mission Specialist 1 on STS-100, International Space Station (ISS) assembly Flight 6A. The crew of Space Shuttle Endeavour delivered and installed Canadarm2, the new Canadian-built robotic arm, as well as the Italian-made resupply module Raffaello. During the 11-day flight, Hadfield performed two spacewalks, which made him the first Canadian to ever leave a spacecraft and float freely in space. In total, Hadfield spent 14 hours, 50 minutes outside, traveling 10 times around the world during his spacewalk.^[9]

See also[link]

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• Canadian space program

References[link]

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Books[link]

• H16511 Dr. Richard Arthur Preston "Canada's RMC – A History of Royal Military College" Second Edition 1982
• H1877 R. Guy C. Smith (editor) "As You Were! Ex-Cadets Remember". In 2 Volumes. Volume I: 1876–1918. Volume II: 1919–1984. RMC. Kingston, Ontario. The R.M.C. Club of Canada. 1984

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Chris Hadfield

• NASA astronaut biography
• CSA astronaut biography
• Chris Hadfield on Twitter
• Spacefacts biography of Chris Hadfield
• Video of Chris Hadfield on The Agenda with Steve Paikin, "Are We Bound for Space?" panel discussion with Lawrence Krauss, Donna Shirley, Chris McKay, Karl Schroeder and Robert D. Richards

Robert Zubrin
Photo of Zubrin by the Mars Society
Born	(1952-04-19) 19 April 1952 (age 60)
Residence	United States
Nationality	American
Fields	Aerospace engineering
Institutions	Martin Marietta Pioneer Astronautics
Alma mater	University of Rochester (B.A) University of Washington (M.S), (PhD)
Known for	Mars Direct Mars Society The Case for Mars Energy Victory

Robert Zubrin (born April 19, 1952) is an American aerospace engineer and author, best known for his advocacy of the manned exploration of Mars. He was the driving force behind Mars Direct—a proposal intended to produce significant reductions in the cost and complexity of such a mission. The key idea was to use the Martian atmosphere to produce oxygen, water, and rocket propellant for the surface stay and return journey. A modified version of the plan was subsequently adopted by NASA as their "design reference mission". He questions the delay and cost-to-benefit ratio of first establishing a base or outpost on an asteroid or another Apollo Program-like return to the Moon, as neither would be able to provide all of its own oxygen, water, or energy; these resources are producible on Mars, and he expects people would be there thereafter.^[1]

Disappointed with the lack of interest from government in Mars exploration and after the success of his book The Case for Mars as well as leadership experience at the National Space Society, Zubrin established the Mars Society in 1998. This is an international organization advocating a manned Mars mission as a goal, by private funding if possible.

Zubrin lives in Lakewood, Colorado; he has two daughters, Rachel and Sarah.