Kathryn P. Hire
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Captain Kathryn P. (Kay) Hire of the U.S. Naval Reserve is a NASA Astronaut.
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Personal Data
Born in Mobile, Alabama, United States. She enjoys competitive sailing, snow skiing, scuba diving, and fishing.
Education
- Murphy High School, Mobile, Alabama, 1977.
- Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering and Management from the U.S. Naval Academy, 1981.
- Master of Science degree in Space Technology from Florida Institute of Technology, 1991.
Organizations
- Association of Space Explorers,
- Association of Naval Aviation,
- Institute of Navigation,
- Naval Reserve Association,
- U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association,
- U.S. Sailing Association.
Special Honours
- Defense Superior Service Medal,
- Meritorious Service Medal,
- Joint Service Commendation Medal,
- Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal,
- National Defense Service Medal,
- Armed Forces Reserve Medal.
Experience
Navy Experience
After earning her Naval Flight Officer Wings in October 1982, Hire conducted worldwide airborne oceanographic research missions with Oceanographic Development Squadron Eight (VXN-8) based at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. She flew as Oceanographic Project Coordinator, Mission Commander and Detachment Officer-in-Charge on board the specially configured P-3 Orion aircraft.
Hire instructed student naval flight officers at the Naval Air Training Unit on Mather Air Force Base, California, progressing from Navigation Instructor and Course Manager to Curriculum Manager.
In January 1989, Hire joined the Naval Reserve at Jacksonville, Florida. Her tours of duty included Squadron Augment Unit VP-0545 and Anti-submarine Warfare Operations Center 0574 and 0374.
Hire, the first female in the U.S. military assigned to a combat aircrew, reported to Patrol Squadron Sixty-Two (VP-62) on May 13, 1993 to fly aboard the P-3 maritime patrol aircraft. Hire later served with USS Kittyhawk 0482, Tactical Support Center 0682, Seventh Fleet Detachment 111, and U.S. Naval Central Command Detachment 108. Recalled to active military duty, Hire supported Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom as a member of U.S. Naval Central Command staff.
NASA Experience
Hire began work at the Kennedy Space Center in May 1989, first as an Orbiter Processing Facility 3 Activation Engineer and later as a Space Shuttle Orbiter Mechanical Systems Engineer for Lockheed Space Operations Company. In 1991 she certified as a Space Shuttle Test Project Engineer (TPE) and headed the checkout of the Extravehicular Mobility Units (spacesuits) and Russian Orbiter Docking System. She was assigned Supervisor of Space Shuttle Orbiter Mechanisms and Launch Pad Swing Arms in 1994.
Selected by NASA in December 1994, Hire reported to the Johnson Space Center in March 1995. After a year of training, she worked in mission control as a spacecraft communicator (CAPCOM). Hire flew as Mission Specialist-2 on STS-90 Neurolab (1998) and logged over 381 hours in space. She served as the Astronaut Office Lead for Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL), Shuttle Payloads, and Flight Crew Equipment. Hire is currently assigned to the Astronaut Support Personnel (ASP) team for Kennedy Space Center Operations.
Space Flight Experience
STS-90 Neurolab (April 17 – May 3, 1998). During the 16-day Spacelab flight, the seven-member crew aboard Space Shuttle Columbia served as both experiment subjects and operators for 26 life science experiments focusing on the effects of microgravity on the brain and nervous system. The STS-90 flight orbited the Earth 256 times, and covered 6.3 million miles.
External link
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