RC Springer - 21.05.1942

[mss]

79 lat kończy były astronauta NASA - Robert Clyde Springer.

Odbył dwa loty kosmiczne na pokładzie wahadłowca Discovery w 1989: misja STS-29 Di/F-8 i Atlantis w 1990: misja

STS-38 At/F-7. Spędził w kosmosie łącznie 9 dni 21 godzin 33 minuty i 15 sekund.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_C._Springer

http://www.spacefacts.de/bios/astronauts/english/springer_robert.htm

http://www.astronaut.ru/as_usa/text/springer.htm

http://www.april12.eu/usaastron/springer213ru.html

[mss]

https://twitter.com/ASE_Astronauts/status/1395839347849584641

[Orionid]

Dziś były astronauta kończy 81 lat.

Robert Clyde Springer został wyselekcjonowany w ramach NASA grupa 9 (1980).

Jest 213. człowiekiem w kosmosie.

Odbył 2 loty kosmiczne, które trwały łącznie 9d 21h 33m 15s:
13.03.1989-18.03.1989 STS-29 Discovery/F-8 004:23:38:48
15.11.1990-20.11.1990 STS-38 Atlantis/F-7 004:21:54:27

21.05.1942 urodził się w St. Louis w stanie Missouri.

1960 ukończył Ashland High School w Ashland w stanie Ohio.

1964 kończył United States Naval Academy w Annapolis, uzyskując tytuł licencjata nauk o marynarce wojennej.

1964 zaciągnął się do United States Marine Corps.

Ukończył szkolenie w Marine Corps Basic School w Quantico w Wirginii.

Został przydzielony do Navy Air Training Command w celu odbycia szkolenia lotniczego w NAS Pensacola na Florydzie oraz Bazie Lotniczej Marynarki Wojennej (NAS Beeville) w Beeville w Teksasie.

08.1966 roku uzyskał stopień lotnika morskiego.

Został przydzielony do VMFA-513, Eskadry Myśliwsko-Szturmowej, z bazą w MCAS Cherry Point w Karolinie Północnej, gdzie latał na F-4.

Następnie został przeniesiony do dywizjonu VMFA-115 z bazą w Chu Lai w Wietnamie Południowym.

Odbył 300 lotów bojowych na samolotach F-4.

06.1968  został przydzielony jako doradca wojskowy do Republic of Korea Marine Corps w Wietnamie.

Odbył 250 lotów bojowych na śmigłowcach O1 „Bird Dogs” i UH1 „Huey”.

03.1971 został przeniesiony do 3d Marine Aircraft Wing w bazie lotniczej MCAS El Toro w Kalifornii, gdzie pełnił funkcję oficera ds. analizy bojowej.

Latał na śmigłowcach UH1E Huey w 267. Eskadrze Szturmowej Śmigłowców (HML-267) w Camp Pendleton w Kalifornii.

1971 uzyskał tytuł magistra nauk ścisłych w zakresie badań i analizy technologicznej w U.S. Naval Postgraduate School.

1972 służył w 367. Eskadrze Szturmowej Śmigłowców (HML-367) w 1d Marine Aircraft Wing w bazie lotniczej Okinawa w Japonii.

Ukończył szkolenie w Navy Fighter Weapons School «Top Gun» i służył jako oficer ds. konserwacji i napraw samolotów w 451. Eskadrze Myśliwców Szturmowych (VMFA-451).

1975 ukończył U. S. Navy Test Pilot School w bazie NAS Patuxent River.

Służył jako pilot doświadczalny na ponad 20. typach samolotów i był szefem Ordnance Systems Branch.

Jako pierwszy przeprowadził test w locie śmigłowca AHIT.

Aplikował do NASA grupa 8
Był jednym z 208 finalistów.

07.11.1977 w ramach 9. grupy ukończył badania lekarskie i rozmowę kwalifikacyjną.

1978 ukończył Armed Forces Staff College w Norfolk w stanie Wirginia i został przydzielony do Headquarters Fleet Marine Force, gdzie pracował nad planowaniem operacyjnym użycia jednostek Korpusu Piechoty Morskiej w Europie i na Bliskim Wschodzie.

Pełnił funkcję adiutanta Dowódcy Generalnego Korpusu Piechoty Morskiej Stanów Zjednoczonych, zanim dołączył do korpusu astronautów.

05.1980 został powołany jako Specjalista Misji w ramach NASA grupa 9.

07.1980 rozpoczął odbywanie szkolenia w Centrum Przygotowania Astronautów (OFP).

08.1981 po ukończeniu szkolenia podstawowego uzyskał uprawnienia specjalisty misji i został przydzielony do Astronaut Office.

Pracował w Mission Control Center jako CAPCOM i koordynował różne aspekty rozwoju Systemu Zdalnego Manipulatora (RMS) wahadłowca.

STS-29 Discovery

STS-38 Atlantis

1990 przeszedł na emeryturę w randze pułkownika piechoty morskiej.

12.1990 przeszedł na emeryturę z korpusu astronautów.

1991 rozpoczął pracę w firmie Boeing w dziale lotnictwa i elektroniki w Huntsville w Alabamie.
Brał udział w projekcie budowy Stacji Kosmicznej Freedom.

Całkowity jego nalot wynosi ponad 4500 godzin, w tym 3500 godzin na samolotach odrzutowych.

http://www.astronautix.com/s/springer.html
https://www.worldspaceflight.com/bios/s/springer-r.php

https://mek.kosmo.cz/bio/usa/00212.htm
https://www.kozmo-data.sk/kozmonauti/springer-robert-clyde.html

https://www.usna.edu/Notables/astronauts/1964springer.php

Astronaut Encounter with Bob Springer


Former NASA astronaut Bob Springer reflects on the shuttle era


Astronaut Training Experience: Astronaut Bob Springer

https://twitter.com/ASE_Astronauts/status/1660359943659171840

21 mai
Joyeux anniversaire (81) à Robert C. Springer🎂🎂🎂
(2 vols : STS-29 et 38 soit 9 jours 21 heures 32 minutes dans l'espace)

https://twitter.com/spacemen1969/status/1660164770350374916

[Orionid]

From small town to the stars: Astronaut launches into his tale
Jenny Berg   

While flying combat missions in Vietnam and Korea, Col. Robert Springer piloted bombers and "Huey" helicopters for more than 500 missions. He logged nearly 5,000 hours of flying time in his career.

But even after all that time in the sky, Springer was still awestruck when he took flight two decades later aboard the STS-29 Discovery.


STS-29 Discovery crew members, wearing launch and entry suits, participate in training exercises in February 1989. Mission specialist Robert C. Springer, second from left, will speak at a Stearns History Museum gala May 11. 
Courtesy of U.S. Air Force

"It's forever etched in my memory," Springer said of the first time he peeked at Earth from space. "It was what I expected and more. We spent an incredible amount of time looking at the technical aspects of it. From the standpoint of the technology and the science and all of that, it was pretty much what we trained for.

"The part that you can't really train for is the awe factor of realizing you are circling the globe every nine minutes at a speed of 17,500 mph," he continued, "and you're going to see 70 to 80 percent of the earth's surface every time you go around the planet."


Former astronaut Col. Robert Springer.  Courtesy of Stearns History Museum

So how did a boy from a small town similar to those in Central Minnesota earn a trip to the stars?

That's one of the things Springer, 74, plans to talk about at the Stearns History Museum Sixth Annual History Makers Gala on May 11. Many people, Springer said, have a misconception about the folks who get into the astronaut program.

"They tend to think of (astronauts) coming from some privileged class, and nothing could be further from the truth," he said. "What it really highlights is staying open to the opportunities that are presented to you.

"It all came together," Springer said. "When they opened up the selection process, I had never even thought about the astronaut program."

Springer was born in St. Louis, Missouri, but grew up in a number of small towns across Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. He graduated from Ashland, Ohio, in 1960 and earned a bachelor's degree in naval science from the United States Naval Academy in 1964. Sprinter joined the U.S. Marine Corps, then reported to the Navy Air Training Command for flight training.


NASA astronauts Mae Jemison, Robert Springer and James Bagin inspect the interface as part of preflight training for the STS-29 Discovery mission, which was launched March 13, 1989. They orbited the earth 80 times and landed five days later. Springer will speak at a Stearns History Museum gala May 11.   Courtesy of NASA

After serving in Vietnam and Korea, Springer graduated from the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School and the Armed Forces Staff College. He was then assigned to the Headquarters Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic, where he worked for joint operational planning for Marine Forces in NATO and the Middle East.

In 1980, he was tapped by NASA as an astronaut candidate due to what he says was the perfect set of life experiences.

Springer became an astronaut in 1981. Before retiring from NASA in 1990, Springer took two trips to space, aboard the STS-29 Discovery, which launched on March 13, 1989, and the STS-38 Atlantis, which launched Nov. 15, 1990.

"This was fairly early on in the shuttle program," Springer said. "The primary mission was launching satellites. We did that on both flights."

Springer's crew also conducted preliminary experiments to learn what type of science can be studied in space. Each flight was five days; Springer logged more than 237 hours in space.

"The incredible beauty, the majesty of it ... . It's almost beyond belief," Springer said.


The STS-29 Discovery crew launched March 13, 1989, to deliver the tracking and data relay satellite and conduct experiments. Crew member Col. Robert Springer will speak at a Stearns History Museum gala May 11.  Courtesy of NASA

After retiring from NASA and the Marine Corps, Springer worked for Boeing Co. Now he travels, doing consulting and motivational speaking. He hopes to use his experience to inspire student interest in math and science.

"By exposing young people to the fascinating parts of math and science — and certainly the space program falls into that — it does inspire them and gets them thinking about a career they may have," Springer said. "We're not trying to get them all to be astronauts, but get them interested in math and science."

Although there might be fewer opportunities for space travel through NASA, Springer said there are more opportunities opening up through commercial space programs such as Blue Origin and SpaceX.

"If that comes to fruition, which I personally believe it will, then the youth of today will actually have not only the chance of flying in space but the jobs associated with it in a multitude of fields," he said.

Springer said the question he gets most when talking about his experiences is how an astronaut goes to the bathroom in space.

"I usually start off with something like, 'Very carefully,' " Springer said with a laugh. "The bottom line is, there's no gravity, so you have to use air flow to do what gravity does here on Earth."

It's that type of humble and humorous approach to storytelling that gala organizers think people will be drawn to.

"He's had the opportunity to do something that so very few people do," said Sartell resident Laurie Strack. "I think what (gala attendees will) really enjoy is how down to earth (Springer) is for what he's achieved in his life."


The space shuttle Atlantis was used by NASA from October 1985 to July 2011. Former astronaut Col. Bob Springer, who will speak at a Stearns History Museum gala May 11, flew on the shuttle from Nov. 15-20, 1990, on the STS-38 Atlantis mission.  Courtesy of Laurie Strack

Strack, who runs the event planning business We'll Get It Done with Debbie Spaniol, helped organize Springer's gala presentation. Strack said she met and kept in touch with some of the astronauts who visited Apollo High School in 2014; when she and her husband Robert visited Florida in February, they arranged a tour of Kennedy Space Center with Springer.

The upcoming gala will raise money for Stearns History Museum. The History Makers Gala, which began in 2012, has featured WCCO television journalist Don Shelby, former Major League Baseball pitcher Bert Blyleven, chef and author Amy Thielen, and Minnesota Public Radio journalist Cathy Wurzer.

The focus of recent galas has been contemporary history, according to Gena Deneen Hiemenz, executive assistant and development associate at Stearns History Museum. Hiemenz said she's also seen a renewed interest in space programs recently due to the passing of John Glenn and the popular movie, "Hidden Figures," which chronicles a team of African-American women mathematicians who served a vital role during the early years of the U.S. space program.


The space shuttle Atlantis, the last of NASA's winged orbiters to fly in space, is on display at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Sartell residents Laurie and Robert Strack visited the center with former astronaut Col. Bob Springer in February.    Courtesy of Laurie Strack

Springer said tens of thousands of people have dedicated their lives to making the space program successful. While it's easy to get caught up in the technical aspects, space exploration is a very "human endeavor," Springer said.

"Some people get to do it, and some people only wish upon it. I'm one of the people who got to do it, and I like to share that experience because I want to keep that spark for discovery," he said.

"At heart, I'm an explorer. We were exploring a different frontier, and we're going to continue to do that."
https://eu.sctimes.com/story/news/local/2017/04/29/small-town-stars-astronaut-launches-into-his-tale/100884540/

NASA astronaut, Ashland native Robert Springer to address hometown on March 10
by Special to Ashland Source February 20, 2022


Col. Bob Springer (top center) was one of the first two Marines to serve on a space shuttle.
https://www.ashlandsource.com/2022/02/20/nasa-astronaut-ashland-native-robert-springer-to-address-hometown-on-march-10/

NASA History Office @NASAhistory 2:00 PM · May 21, 2018
#HappyBirthday to astronaut Bob Springer who flew aboard STS-29 Discovery and STS-38 Atlantis.

https://twitter.com/NASAhistory/status/998533873687506944

[Orionid]

Jeden z wielu uczestników lotów kosmicznych z doświadczeniem zdobytym w wojnie wietnamskiej.

Ohio astronaut Robert Springer flew combat missions, then to space
Shahid Meighan   Columbus Dispatch


Robert Springer stretches out in front of the forward flight deck control panels aboard Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 104.    Provided by United States Naval Academy

(...) “That was a time when (the Vietnam War) was just building up, so we were in a rush to get pilots into the program,” recalled Springer. After receiving his aviator wings in 1966, Springer was assigned to the VMFA-115 squadron in Chu Lai, Vietnam. The squadron was nicknamed the "Silver Eagles."

During his tour in Vietnam, Springer flew more than 500 combat missions, where he piloted the F-4 fighter jets and the Bell UH-1 Iroquois "Huey" helicopters – an aircraft that would later become symbolic for the war. He also flew Huey helicopters while serving as an adviser to the Republic of Korea Marine Corps.

Springer said he never shot down any enemy aircraft, but he did have a close call where the engines of the F-4 he was flying went out during a bombing run. Relying on his training, he was able to get the engines back online and finish out the mission. (...)
https://eu.dispatch.com/story/news/usa250/2026/03/07/robert-springer-astronaut-nasa-space-missions/88665109007/

[Orionid]

Robert C. Springer, Discovery astronaut
UPI Archives March 12, 1989

(...) The goal of the flight is the launch of a $100 million Tracking and Data Relay Satellite scheduled to be deployed by Springer six hours and 13 minutes after blastoff.

The satellite will join two others already in space to complete an orbital communications network designed to keep shuttle crews and other satellites in contact with the ground for at least 85 percent of each orbit.

While the satellite is clearly important to NASA, as are the experiments aboard Discovery, Springer described the flight as a 'bread-and-butter' mission. More important, he said, was the context of this flight and those that follow.

'Some of the things that we're doing in the future may not capture the imagination quite as much, and that's a little bit unfortunate, but it's part of what has transpired and we're being a little more practical.

'But if you can just push back a little bit and do a little bit of blue-sky thinking about the direction that we're going, (the program) offers such tremendous potential, far beyond what I think the average person sitting at home can imagine. (...)
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1989/03/12/Robert-C-Springer-Discovery-astronaut/9689605682000/

Marine Col. Robert Springer, 48: Atlantis astronaut
By United Press International UPI Archives Nov. 15, 1990

(...) Springer's second voyage into space this week is a classified military mission to launch what may be a photo-reconnaissance satellite to spy on the Persian Gulf region.

As usual with such military flights, details were classified and pre- launch interviews with the astronauts were forbidden. But before his first flight, Springer said he looked forward to talking about the wonder of space travel.

'That's always a limitation to scientists and engineers and test pilots, you tend to come back and not talk about it,' he said. 'I don't want to be one of those. I want to be somebody who can come back and share the whole experience with the people who are interested in it.' (...)
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1990/11/15/Marine-Col-Robert-Springer-48-Atlantis-astronaut/5813658645200/

[Orionid]

Former Shuttle Astronaut Reflects on Discovery's Final Mission
By Jason Rhian - October 28, 2010 04:35 AM UTC |

(...) "The flight overall was fantastic, it was so incredibly intense," Springer said with a smile. "We were one of the first flights after the Challenger accident. While we normally plan for a 16 hour day during missions, we were so busy it ended up being an 18 hour day. Whenever we had a free minute we would hog the windows and stare out into space until you couldn't fight it anymore and you'd drift off to sleep – and around the shuttle cabin." (...)
https://www.universetoday.com/articles/former-shuttle-astronaut-reflects-on-discoverys-final-mission

[Orionid]

Photo Gallery: Ashland County Historical Society unveils Col. Robert Springer's display
7 PHOTOS 9:25 p.m. cśs Mar. 24, 2023


Col. Robert Springer's T-38 flight suit is on display next to a case full of his military and NASA memorabilia display at the Ashland County Historical Society's Freer Home on Friday, March 24, 2023. TOM E. PUSKAR/ASHLAND TIMES-GAZETTE  TOM E. PUSKAR/ASHLAND TIMES-GAZETTE
https://eu.times-gazette.com/picture-gallery/news/local/2023/03/24/ashland-county-historical-society-unveils-col-robert-springers-nasa-military-display/11538206002/

2) Astronaut speaks about space travels
January 7, 2022 in News, Sartell – St. Stephen

(...) Springer said he continues to be involved in a variety of non-profit organizations to help students get involved with science, technology, engineering and math programs. He’s chairman of the board of the Kennedy Space Center Education Foundation.

Springer still works with some of the companies that are continuing to develop new programs for space travel. He also enjoys golf and kayaking.

Springer currently resides in Bevard County, Fla. where the Kennedy Space Center is located. He is married to Deborah and has four children and six grandchildren. (...)
https://thenewsleaders.com/astronaut-speaks-about-space-travels/

[Orionid]

Space stories: Onetime NASA space shuttle member returns to Ashland after three decades
Jarred Opatz   | Ashland Times Gazette

(...) Even though he never got seasick in the Navy, where he was a test pilot who graduated from its Top Gun school, or during other parts of his military career, which included a tour of duty during the Vietnam War, Springer said he got motion sickness on his first space shuttle flight.

"Getting sick in space is no fun," said Springer, who added when he tried to puke in a barf bag on the shuttle, with zero gravity, it came back up into his face. "I could see the headlines, 'Ashland astronaut dies in his own puke,.' " he added with a laugh. (...)

Teamwork came in handy for Springer after his talk while people were in line waiting to speak with him. That's when an Ashland man, who called himself "an independent journalist" kept drifting around the line trying to ask Springer about his "extraordinary claims about being in space" and conspiracy theories about the moon landing and the shape of Earth.

Disturbance from 'an independent journalist' puts damper on the event

People from the Historical Society, Ashland High School and others helped lead Springer out of the theater and away from the man who wouldn't leave when politely asked. They then called for the police, who eventually arrested the man for, according to the police report, disorderly conduct, criminal trespass and failure to disclose personal information. (...)
https://eu.times-gazette.com/story/news/2022/03/12/former-nasa-astronaut-talks-experiences-space-shuttle/6979443001/