STS-131 launch & landing (4-5-10)

STS-131 crew

Seated (L-R): James Dutton, Alan Poindexter

Standing (L-R): Richard Mastracchio, Stephanie Wilson, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Naoko Yamazaki, Clayton Anderson

STS-131 mission patch

Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-131), launched April 5, 2010, was the longest mission for Discovery and the last 7-man crew flight.  Its crew consisted of Commander Alan Poindexter, Pilot James Dutton, Richard Mastracchio, Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson, Naoko Yamazaki (JAXA), and Clayton Anderson.

The primary payload was the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo.  Discovery carried food and science supplies to the International Space Station, as well as the Muscle Atrophy Resistive Exercise (MARES) rack.

The crew returned to Earth April 20, after over 15 days in space. 

Atlantis (STS-106) launched 2000

STS-106 crew

Front row (L-R): Scott Altman, Terrence Wilcutt

Back row (L-R): Borus Morukov, Richard Mastracchio, Edward Lu, Daniel Burbank, Yuri Malenchenko

STS-106 Mission patch

Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-106), launched September 8, 2000, carried seven astronauts to the International Space Station.  Its crew consisted of Commander Terrence Wilcutt, Pilot Scott Altman, Edward Lu, Richard Mastracchio, Daniel Burbank, Yuri Malenchenko and Borus Morukov.

Lu and Malenchenko conducted an EVA lasting 6 hours 14 minutes.

The crew returned to Earth September 20.

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle and Soyuz astronaut Rick Mastracchio!

Richard "Rick" Mastracchio, born February 11, 1960 in Waterbury, Connecticut, is a veteran of three space shuttle flights and one trip on a Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station. 

His first flight into space was aboard Atlantis (STS-106) as mission specialist in September 2000 to the ISS.  He operated the Canadarm to move fellow astronauts Ed Lu and Yuri Malenchenko as they performed assembly work on the station.

His second flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-118) as mission specialist in August 2007 to the International Space Station.  During the mission he conducted three EVAs, totaling over 18 hours. 

Mastracchio's third flight was aboard Discovery (STS-131) as mission specialist in April 2010 to the ISS.  He conducted 3 EVAs with fellow astronaut Clayton Anderson totaling around 20 1/2 hours.

His fourth and final flight was aboard Soyuz TMA-11M which launched in November 2013 as part of Expeditions 38 and 39.  He performed three EVAs (must be his lucky number!) and returned to Earth in May 2014.

Endeavour (STS-118) launched 2007

STS-118 crew (L-R): Richard Mastracchio, Barbara Morgan, Charles Hobaugh, Scott Kelly,  Tracy Caldwell, Dafydd Williams, Alvin Drew.

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-118), launched August 8, 2007 to the International Space Station, was the first flight of Endeavour since the Columbia disaster in 2003.  Its crew consisted of Commander Scott Kelly, Pilot Charles Hobaugh, Tracy Caldwell, Richard Mastracchio, Dafydd Williams, Barbara Morgan and Alvin Drew.

Barbara Morgan had trained as a backup to Christa McAuliffe as NASA's Teacher in Space, but that ended with the Challenger disaster.  However, when Morgan flew on STS-118, she was not considered a Mission Specialist Educator, but rather a Mission Specialist who had once been a teacher.  During the mission, she spoke to school children on Earth.

Four EVAs were conducted by Rick Mastracchio, Dafydd Williams and Clayton Anderson, who had arrived on the ISS with STS-117. 

They returned to Earth August 21.

Soyuz TMA-11M launched 2013

 

Wakata, Tyurin, Mastracchio

The Soyuz TMA-11M mission, launched November 7, 2013, was the 120th flight of the Soyuz spacecraft.  When Soyuz reached the International Space Station, the Olympic torch was passed for the first time in outer space!  It returned to Earth 5 days later on Soyuz TMA-09M.

TMA-11M's crew consisted of  Commander Mikhail Tyurin (Russian), Flight Engineer Richard Mastracchio (Connecticut) and Flight Engineer Koichi Wakata (Japanese).

Soyuz TMA-11M returned to Earth May 14, 2014.