Tuesday, June 4, 2024

Happy birthday, astronaut Shane Kimbrough!



Robert "Shane" Kimbrough, born June 4, 1967 in Killeen, Texas, has been in space three times.

He graduated from the US Military Academy and flew Apache helicopters in the Operation Desert Storm. He joined NASA in 2000 and was part of the first group of astronauts selected following the Columbia disaster.

His first mission into space was aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-126) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in November 2008.  He conducted two EVAs, lasting a total of almost 13 hours.  He spent almost 16 days in space.

Kimbrough's second trip into space was aboard Soyuz MS-02 as flight engineer to the ISS in October 2016.  He participated in Expeditions 49-50.  He carried a soccer ball belonging to Ellison Onizuka, who died in the Challenger disaster to the ISS. He returned to Earth in April 2017, after over 173 days in space.

His third mission into space was aboard SpaceX Crew-2 as commander to the ISS in April 2021 to the ISS. He participated in Expeditions 65-66. He returned to Earth in November 2021, after more than 199 days in space, the longest US mission to date. 

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