Paul Richards, born May 20, 1964 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, went into space aboard the space shuttle Discovery (STS-102) to the International Space Station as a mission specialist in March 2001. The mission was to carry the crew of Expedition 2 to the ISS and bring home Expedition 1.
During the mission, Richards and fellow astronaut Andrew Thomas performed an EVA which lasted 6 hours and 21 minutes.
Richards returned to Earth after almost 13 days in space. He retired from NASA in February 2002 to pursue private interests.
Astronaut James Voss, born March 3, 1949 in Cordova, Alabama, is a veteran of 5 space shuttle flights. He graduated from Auburn University in 1972 with a Bachelor's Degree in Aerospace Engineering, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the US Army. He attended the University of Colorado and graduated with a Master's Degree in Aerospace Engineering Sciences.
His first trip into space was aboard Atlantis (STS-44) as mission specialist in November-December 1991. The crew was scheduled for a ten-day mission but was scrubbed after only 6 days, due to failure of one of the three orbiter inertial measurement units.
His second trip was aboard Discovery (STS-53) as mission specialist in December 1992. The payload was a classified by the US Department of Defense. Voss and the crew spent over 7 days in space.
His third mission was aboard Endeavour (STS-69) as mission specialist in September 1995. During the mission, Voss conducted an EVA with fellow astronaut Michael Gernhardt which lasted o6 hours 46 minutes. The crew spent nearly 11 days in space.
Voss's fourth trip into space was aboard Atlantis (STS-101) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in May 2000. During the mission, he conducted another EVA with fellow astronaut Jeffrey Williams which lasted 6 hours and 44 minutes. The crew spent nearly 10 days in space.
His fifth and final mission was aboard Discovery (STS-102) as mission specialist launched in March 2001 to the International Space Station. Along with fellow astronauts Susan Helms (who celebrated her birthday last week) and cosmonaut Yuri Usachov, he participated in Expedition 2 aboard the ISS. He and Voss conducted the longest EVA to date: 8 hours, 56 minutes. They returned to Earth in August 2001 aboard Discovery (STS-105).
Susan Jane Helms, born February 26, 1958 in Charlotte, North Carolina, is a veteran of five Space Shuttle flights. She attained the rank of Lieutenant General in the US Air Force before retiring.
Her first mission was aboard Endeavour (STS-54) as mission specialist in January 1993. She spent almost 6 days in space, making 96 orbits of Earth.
Her second mission was aboard Discovery (STS-64) as mission specialist in September 1994. She spent almost 11 days in space and completed 176 orbits of Earth.
Her third mission was aboard Columbia (STS-78) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in June-July 1996. She spent almost 17 days in space and completed 271 orbits of Earth.
Her fourth trip was aboard Atlantis (STS-101) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in May 2000. The wake up call on Day 2, Free Fallin' by Tom Petty was dedicated to Helms. She spent almost 10 days in space and completed 155 orbits of Earth.
Her fifth and final mission started on Discovery (STS-102) as mission specialist to the International Space Station launched in March 2001. She participated in Expedition 2 on the ISS, conducting an EVA on March 11. She returned to Earth aboard Discovery (STS-105) in August 2001, having spent over 167 days in space.
Expedition 1 crew (L-R): Sergei Krikalev, Bill Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko
Expedition 1 mission patch
Expedition One, which began November 2, 2000, marked the beginning of a constant human presence aboard the International Space Station. Crew members William Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko, and Sergei Krikalev had blasted off just two days before aboard Soyuz TM-31 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
The first supply ship, the unmanned Russian spacecraft Progress M1-4 arrived at the station on November 18.
On December 2, Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-97) arrived at the ISS, bringing more equipment for the station. The crew conducted three EVAs prior to boarding the station. The Endeavour's crew returned to Earth December 11.
Expedition One's crew was given Christmas Day and New Year's Day off.
On February 9, 2001, Atlantis (STS-98) docked with the station bringing a crew of five for a temporary stay. By this time, Expedition One had been on board for three months. NASA had noticed a "three-month wall", a psychological barrier that causes depression in previous astronauts. To combat this, NASA allowed more time for them to speak to their families and encouraged them to watch movies and listen to music they liked.
Discovery (STS-102) arrived at the ISS March 10, 2001, bringing a new crew for Expedition 2. Expedition One returned to Earth on Discovery March 21, ending their four and a half months stay in space.
Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-102), launched March 8, 2001, was a resupply mission to the International Space Station. It also rotated the Expedition 1 and Expedition 2 crews to ISS. The crew that launched and then returned March 21 consisted of Commander James Wetherbee, Pilot James Kelly, mission specialist Andy Thomas and mission specialist Paul Richards.
They carried the members of Expedition 2 to the station, who were Yury Usachov, James Voss and Susan Helms. Expedition 1, which consisted of William Shepherd, Yuri Gidzenko, and Sergei Krikalev.
