science

NASA Astronaut Group 12

NASA Astronaut Group 12 is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand NASA Astronaut Group 12 rather than just read about it. In short: NASA Astronaut Group 12 (the GAFFers) was a group of 15 astronauts announced by NASA on June 5, 1987. Group members Pilots Andrew M.

Key takeaways

NASA Astronaut Group 12 belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect NASA Astronaut Group 12 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of NASA Astronaut Group 12 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

NASA Astronaut Group 12 (the GAFFers) was a group of 15 astronauts announced by NASA on June 5, 1987.

Group members

Pilots Andrew M. Allen (born 1955), U.S. Marine Corps (3 flights) STS-46 Atlantis — July 1992 — Pilot — Deployment of EURECA and Tethered Satellite System (TSS) STS-62 Columbia — March 1994 — Pilot — Microgravity experiments STS-75 Columbia — February 1996 — Commander — Tethered Satellite System reflight, lost due to broken tether Kenneth D. Bowersox (born 1956), U.S. Navy (5 flights) STS-50 Columbia — June 1992 — Pilot — Spacelab mission STS-61 Endeavour — December 1993 — Pilot — First Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission STS-73 Columbia — October 1995 — Commander — Spacelab mission STS-82 Discovery — February 1997 — Commander — Second Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission STS-113 Endeavour — November 2002 — Mission Specialist 3 (launched only) — ISS assembly flight 11A: P1 truss, crew rotation ISS Expedition 6 — November 2002–May 2003 — ISS Commander Soyuz TMA-1 — May 2003 — Flight Engineer (landed only) — ISS crew rotation Curtis L. Brown, Jr. (born 1956), U.S. Air Force (6 flights) STS-47 Endeavour — September 1992 — Pilot — Spacelab-J, Japan-funded Spacelab mission STS-66 Atlantis — November 1994 — Pilot — ATLAS-3 science platform experiments STS-77 Endeavour — May 1996 — Pilot — SPACEHAB, SPARTAN STS-85 Discovery — August 1997 — Commander — Deployed and retrieved CRISTA-SPAS STS-95 Discovery — October 1998 — Commander — SPACEHAB STS-103 Discovery — December 1999 — Commander — Third Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission Kevin P. Chilton (born 1954), U.S. Air Force (3 flights) STS-49 Endeavour — May 1992 — Pilot — Intelsat VI hand-retrieval and repair STS-59 Endeavour — April 1994 — Pilot — Experiments aboard Shuttle Radar Laboratory-1 STS-76 Atlantis — March 1996 — Commander — Third Shuttle-Mir docking Donald R. McMonagle (born 1952), U.S. Air Force (3 flights) STS-39 Discovery — April 1991 — Mission Specialist 4 — First unclassified DoD mission, military science experiments STS-54 Endeavour — January 1993 — Pilot – Tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS-F) deployment STS-66 Atlantis — November 1994 — Commander — ATLAS-3 science platform experiments William F. Readdy (born 1952), U.S. Navy (3 flights) STS-42 Discovery — January 1992 — Mission Specialist 3 — Spacelab mission STS-51 Discovery — September 1993 — Pilot — ACTS satellite deployment, SPAS-ORFEUS deployment and retrieval STS-79 Atlantis — September 1996 — Commander — Fourth Shuttle-Mir docking Kenneth S. Reightler, Jr. (born 1951), U.S. Navy (2 flights) STS-48 Discovery — September 1991 — Pilot — Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite deployment STS-60 Discovery — February 1994 — Pilot — SPACEHAB, Wake Shield Facility

Mission specialists Thomas D. Akers (born 1951), U.S. Air Force (4 flights) STS-41 Discovery — October 1990 — Mission Specialist 3 — Ulysses/Inertial Upper Stage solar probe deployment STS-49 Endeavour — May 1992 — Mission Specialist 4 — Intelsat VI hand-retrieval and repair STS-61 Endeavour — December 1993 — Mission Specialist 5 — First Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission STS-79 Atlantis — September 1996 — Mission Specialist 1 — Fourth Shuttle-Mir docking N. Jan Davis (born 1953), Engineer (3 flights) STS-47 Endeavour — September 1992 — Mission Specialist 2 — Spacelab-J, Japan-funded Spacelab mission STS-60 Discovery — February 1994 — Mission Specialist 1 — SPACEHAB, Wake Shield Facility STS-85 Discovery — August 1997 — Payload Commander — Deployed and retrieved CRISTA-SPAS C. Michael Foale (born 1957), Astrophysicist (6 flights) STS-45 Atlantis — March 1992 — Mission Specialist 3 — ATLAS-1 science platform STS-56 Discovery — April 1993 — Mission Specialist 1 — ATLAS-2 science platform STS-63 Discovery — February 1995 — Mission Specialist 1 — First Shuttle-Mir rendezvous, SPACEHAB STS-84 Atlantis — May 1997 — Mission Specialist 5 (launched only) — Sixth Shuttle-Mir docking Mir EO-23/Mir EO-24 — May 1997–October 1997 — Flight Engineer 2 STS-86 Atlantis — October 1997 — Mission Specialist 5 (landed only) — Seventh Shuttle-Mir docking STS-103 Discovery — December 1999 — Mission Specialist 3 — Third Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission Soyuz TMA-3 — October 2003–April 2004 — Flight Engineer — ISS crew rotation ISS Expedition 8 — October 2003–April 2004 — ISS Commander Gregory J. Harbaugh (born 1956), Engineer (4 flights) STS-39 Discovery — April 1991 — Mission Specialist 2 — First unclassified DoD mission, military science experiments STS-54 Endeavour — January 1993 — Mission Specialist 2 – Tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS-F) deployment STS-71 Atlantis — June 1995 — Mission Specialist 1 — First Shuttle-Mir docking STS-82 Discovery — February 1997 — Mission Specialist 3 — Second Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission Mae C. Jemison (born 1956), Physician (1 flight) STS-47 Endeavour — September 1992 — Mission Specialist 4 — Spacelab-J, Japan-funded Spacelab mission Bruce E. Melnick (born 1949), U.S. Coast Guard (2 flights) STS-41 Discovery — October 1990 — Mission Specialist 1 — Ulysses/Inertial Upper Stage solar probe deployment STS-49 Endeavour — May 1992 — Mission Specialist 2 — Intelsat VI hand-retrieval and repair Mario Runco, Jr. (born 1952), U.S. Navy (3 flights) STS-44 Atlantis — November 1991 — Mission Specialist 2 — DSP satellite deployment STS-54 Endeavour — January 1993 — Mission Specialist 1 – Tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS-F) deployment STS-77 Endeavour — May 1996 — Mission Specialist 3 — SPACEHAB, SPARTAN James S. Voss (born 1949), U.S. Army (5 flights) STS-44 Atlantis — November 1991 — Mission Specialist 3 — DSP satellite deployment STS-53 Discovery — December 1992 — Mission Specialist 2 — Partially classified 10th and final DoD mission, likely deployment of SDS2 satellite STS-69 Endeavour — September 1995 — Mission Specialist 1 — Wake Shield Facility, SPARTAN STS-101 Atlantis — May 2000 — Mission Specialist 3 — ISS supply STS-102 Discovery — March 2001 — Mission Specialist 4 (launched only) — ISS supply and crew rotation ISS Expedition 2 — March 2001–August 2001 — Flight Engineer 2 STS-105 Discovery — August 2001 — Mission Specialist 4 (landed only) — ISS supply and crew rotation

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with NASA Astronaut Group 12

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what NASA Astronaut Group 12 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to NASA Astronaut Group 12 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about NASA Astronaut Group 12 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of NASA Astronaut Group 12

In research: NASA Astronaut Group 12 appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses NASA Astronaut Group 12 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: NASA Astronaut Group 12 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1987 establishments in the United States, 1987 in spaceflight, Lists of astronauts, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for NASA Astronaut Group 12 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study NASA Astronaut Group 12 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what NASA Astronaut Group 12 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain NASA Astronaut Group 12 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is NASA Astronaut Group 12 in simple terms?

NASA Astronaut Group 12 (the GAFFers) was a group of 15 astronauts announced by NASA on June 5, 1987. Group members Pilots Andrew M.

Why does NASA Astronaut Group 12 matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study NASA Astronaut Group 12?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on NASA Astronaut Group 12.