John Yembrick
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0602
Kylie Clem
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
RELEASE: 07-73
NASA ASSIGNS CREW FOR SHUTTLE MISSION TO INSTALL JAPANESE LAB
WASHINGTON - NASA has assigned the crew for space shuttle mission
STS-124, targeted for launch in February 2008. The flight will
deliver the Pressurized Module and robotic arm of the Japanese
Experiment Module, known as "Kibo" (hope), to the International Space
Station.
Navy Cmdr. Mark E. Kelly will command the space shuttle Atlantis
during the mission. Navy Cmdr. Kenneth T. Ham will serve as the
pilot. Mission specialists will include NASA astronauts Karen L.
Nyberg; Air Force Col. Ronald J. Garan, Jr.; Air Force Reserve Col.
Michael E. Fossum; and Navy Cmdr. Stephen G. Bowen. Japan Aerospace
Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide also will serve
as a mission specialist.
The STS-124 mission is the second of three flights that will launch
components to complete the Kibo laboratory. The mission will include
two spacewalks to install the new lab and its remote manipulator
system. The lab's logistics module, which will have been installed in
a temporary location during STS-123, will be attached to the new lab.
The mission will be the third spaceflight for Kelly, the second
spaceflight for Fossum and the first spaceflight for Ham, Garan,
Nyberg, Bowen and Hoshide.
Kelly flew as the pilot of STS-108 in 2001 and STS-121 in 2006. He
considers West Orange, N.J., to be his hometown. Kelly has a
bachelor's degree from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, King's
Point, N.Y., and a master's degree from the Naval Postgraduate
School, Monterey, Calif. He was selected as an astronaut in 1996.
Ham was born in Plainfield, N.J. He has a bachelor's degree from the
U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., and a master's degree from the
Naval Postgraduate School. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998.
Fossum performed three spacewalks during STS-121 in 2006. He grew up
in McAllen, Texas, and has a bachelor's degree from Texas A&M
University, College Station, and master's degrees from the Air Force
Institute of Technology, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and
the University of Houston, Clear Lake. He was selected as an
astronaut in 1998.
Garan was born in Yonkers, N.Y. He has a bachelor's degree from the
State University of New York College at Oneonta and master's degrees
from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, Fla., and
the University of Florida, Gainesville. Garan was selected as an
astronaut in 2000.
Nyberg also was selected as an astronaut in 2000. She considers her
hometown to be Vining, Minn. She has a bachelor's degree from the
University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, and a master's degree and
doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin.
Bowen was born in Cohasset, Mass. He has a bachelor's from the U.S.
Naval Academy and a master's from the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, Cambridge. Bowen also was selected as an astronaut in
2000.
Hoshide was born in Tokyo. He was selected by JAXA as one of three
astronaut candidates in 1999 and certified by JAXA as an astronaut in
2001. He arrived at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, for training
in 2004 and completed NASA Astronaut Candidate Training in 2006. He
has a bachelor's degree from Keio University, Tokyo, and a master's
degree from the University of Houston.
For complete astronaut biographical information, visit:
For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit:
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