Henry Hartsfield

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Henry Hartsfield bigraphy, stories - Astronauts

Henry Hartsfield : biography

November 21, 1933 –

Henry Warren "Hank" Hartsfield, Jr. (born November 21, 1933) is a retired United States Air Force officer and a former USAF and NASA astronaut who logged over 480 hours in space.

Personal

Hartsfield was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and his mother, Mrs. Norma Hartsfield, still resides there. He is married to the former Judy Frances Massey of Princeton, North Carolina and has two daughters: Judy Lynn, May 29, 1958; and Keely Warren, May 14, 1959.

USAF Experience

Hartsfield received his commission through the Reserve Officer Training Program (ROTC) at Auburn University. He entered the U.S. Air Force in 1955, and his assignments included a tour with the 53rd Tactical Fighter Squadron in Bitburg, Germany. He is also a graduate of the USAF Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base, California, and was an instructor there prior to his assignment in 1966 to the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program as an astronaut. After cancellation of the MOL Program in June 1969, he was reassigned to NASA.

He has logged over 7,300 hours flying time—of which over 6,150 hours are in the following jet aircraft: F-86, F-100, F-104, F-105, F-106, T-33, and T-38.

NASA experience

Hartsfield became a NASA astronaut in September 1969. He was a member of the astronaut support crew for Apollo 16 and served as a member of the astronaut support crew for the Skylab 2, 3, and 4 missions.

Hartsfield retired in August 1977 from the United States Air Force with more than 22 years of active service but continues his assignment as a NASA astronaut in a civilian capacity. He was a member of the orbital flight test missions group of the astronaut office and was responsible for supporting the development of the Space Shuttle entry flight control system and its associated interfaces.

Columbia astronauts [[Thomas K. Mattingly and Pilot Henry W. Hartsfield salute President Ronald Reagan, standing beside his wife, Nancy, upon landing in 1982.]]

Hartsfield served as backup pilot for STS-2 and STS-3, Columbia’s second and third orbital flight tests. A three flight veteran, Hartsfield served as pilot on STS-4 in 1982, and was spacecraft commander on STS-41-D in 1984, and STS-61-A in 1985.

Hartsfield was the pilot on STS-4, the fourth and final orbital test flight of the Shuttle Columbia, which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on June 27, 1982. He was accompanied by Thomas K. Mattingly (spacecraft commander) on this seven-day mission designed to: further verify ascent and entry phases of shuttle missions; perform continued studies of the effects of long-term thermal extremes on the Orbiter subsystems; and conduct a survey of Orbiter-induced contamination on the orbiter payload bay. Additionally, the crew operated several scientific experiments located in the Orbiter’s cabin as well as in the payload bay. These experiments included the Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System (CFES), designed to investigate the separation of biological materials in a fluid according to their surface electrical charge. The crew is also credited with effecting an in-flight repair which enabled them to activate the first operational "Getaway Special"—comprising nine experiments that range from algae and duckweed growth in space to fruit fly and brine shrimp genetic studies. STS-4 completed 112 orbits of the earth before landing on a concrete runway at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on July 4, 1982.

Hartsfield was next spacecraft commander of STS-41-D which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on August 30, 1984. The crew included Mike Coats (pilot), Judy Resnik, Steve Hawley and Mike Mullane (mission specialists), and Charlie Walker (payload specialist). This was the maiden flight of the Orbiter Discovery. During the six-day mission the crew successfully activated the OAST-1 solar cell wing experiment, deployed three satellites, SBS-D, SYNCOM IV-2, and TELSTAR 3-C, operated the CFES-III experiment, the student crystal growth experiment, and photography experiments using the IMAX motion picture camera. The crew earned the name "Icebusters" when Hartsfield successfully removed a hazardous ice buildup from the Orbiter using the Remote Manipulator System. STS-41-D completed 96 orbits of the earth before landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on September 5, 1984.