Guion Bluford

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Guion Bluford bigraphy, stories - Astronauts

Guion Bluford : biography

November 22, 1942 –

Dr. Guion Stewart “Guy” Bluford, Jr. (born November 22, 1942), is an engineer, NASA astronaut, and the first African American in space. Before becoming an astronaut, Bluford was a Colonel in the U.S. Air Force. He participated in four Space Shuttle flights between 1983 and 1992. In 1983, as a member of the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger on the mission STS-8, Bluford became the first African American in space as well as the second person of African ancestry in space, after Cuban cosmonaut Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez.

Awards and decorations

  • USAF Command Pilot Astronaut Wings (1983)
  • Defense Superior Service Medal (1984)
  • Legion of Merit (1993)
  • three Defense Meritorious Service Medals (1986, 1992 and 1993)
  • Air Force Meritorious Service Medal (1978)
  • Ten Air Force Air Medals (1967)
  • Air Force Commendation Medal (1972)
  • Three Air Force Outstanding Unit Awards (1967, 1970 and 1972)
  • National Intelligence Medal of Achievement (1993)
  • National Defense Service Medal (1965)
  • Vietnam Service Medal (1967)
  • Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Palm (1967)
  • Vietnam Campaign Medal (1967)
  • NASA Distinguished Service Medal (1994)
  • NASA Exceptional Service Medal (1992)
  • Four NASA Group Achievement Awards (1980, 1981, 1989, and 2003)
  • NASA Space Flight Medals (1983, 1985, 1991 and 1992)
  • German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Aviation Badge from the Federal Republic of West Germany (1969)
  • Leadership Award of Phi Delta Kappa (1962)
  • T-38 Instructor Pilot of the Month (1970)
  • Air Training Command Outstanding Flight Safety Award (1970)
  • Air Force Institute of Technology’s Mervin E. Gross Award (1974)
  • Who’s Who Among Black Americans (1975 to 1977)
  • National Society of Black Engineers Distinguished National Scientist Award (1979)
  • Pennsylvania State University Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award (1983), the Alumni Fellows Award (1986)
  • Ebony Black Achievement Award (1983)
  • NAACP Image Award (1983)
  • City of Philadelphia’s Philadelphia Bowl (1983)
  • Who’s Who in America (1983 to present)
  • Pennsylvania Distinguished Service Medal (1984)
  • New York City Urban League’s Whitney Young Memorial Award
  • 1991 Black Engineer of the Year Award
  • Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) Komarov Diploma (1993)
  • International Space Hall of Fame inductee (1997)
  • U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame inductee (2010)
  • Air Force Institute of Technology Distinguished Alumni Award (2002)
  • University of Houston-Clear Lake Distinguished Alumni Award (2003)
  • The Pennsylvania Society Gold Medal (2011)

He also received honorary doctorate degrees from Florida A&M University, Texas Southern University, Virginia State University, Morgan State University, Stevens Institute of Technology, Tuskegee Institute, Bowie State College, Thomas Jefferson University, Chicago State University, Georgian Court University, Drexel University, Kent State University, Central State University and the University of the Sciences.

Biography

Early years

Bluford was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and graduated from Overbrook High School. He received a B.S. in aerospace engineering from the Pennsylvania State University in 1964, an M.S. in aerospace engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) in 1974, a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering with a minor in laser physics, again from AFIT, in 1978, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Houston–Clear Lake in 1987.NASA, , (accessed 1 May 2013) He married Linda Tull in 1964 and has two sons, Guion III and James. While at Penn State, Bluford became a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.

Career

Bluford attended pilot training at Williams Air Force Base, and received his pilot wings in January 1966. He then went to F-4C combat crew training in Arizona and Florida and was assigned to the 557th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam. He flew 144 combat missions, 65 of which were over North Vietnam.