Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut Richard Richards!

Richard Richards, born August 24, 1946 in Key West, Florida, is a veteran of four space shuttle flights.

His first flight was aboard Columbia (STS-28) as pilot in August 1989.  The mission was dedicated to the Department of Defense.

His second flight was aboard Discovery (STS-41) as commander in October 1990.  The primary mission was the deployment of the Ulysses probe.

His third flight was aboard Columbia (STS-50) as commander in June-July 1992.  It was the first time the US Microgravity Laboratory was taken into orbit.

His fourth and final flight was aboard Discovery (STS-64) as commander in September 1994.  The mission saw the first untethered EVA in ten years.

Columbia (STS-28) launched 1989

STS-28 crew

Front row (L-R): Richard Richards, Brewster Shaw, David Leestma

Back row (L-R): Mark Brown, James Adamson

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-28), launched August 8, 1989, was the fourth mission dedicated to the Department of Defense.  Its crew consisted of Commander Brewster Shaw, Pilot Richard Richards, James Adamson, David Leestma and Mark Brown.

The crew deployed two reconnaissance satellites during the mission.  They returned to Earth August 13.

Discovery (STS-41) launched 1990

STS-41 crew (L-R): Bruce Melnick, Robert Cabana, Thomas Akers, Richard Richards, William Shepherd

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-41), launched October 6, 1990, deployed the Ulysses probe, which was sent to study the polar regions of the sun.  Its crew consisted of Commander Richard Richards, Pilot Robert Cabana, Bruce Melnick, William Shepherd and Thomas Akers.

Ulysses was launched only six hours after Discovery took off.  The crew returned to Earth October 10.

Discovery (STS-64) launched 1994

STS-64 crew

Front Row (L-R): Blaine Hammond, Richard Richards, Susan Helms

Back Row (L-R): Mark Lee, Jerry Linenger, Carl Meade

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-64) launched September 9, 1994. Its crew consisted of Commander Richard Richards, Pilot Blaine Hammond, Jerry Linenger, Susan Helms, Carl Meade, and Mark Lee.

Lee and Meade conducted an untethered EVA to test a new backpack called Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue (SAFER), designed to be used in the event a crew member becomes untethered during a spacewalk.

They returned to Earth September 20.

Columbia (STS-50) launched 1992

STS-50 (L-R): Ellen Baker, Kenneth Bowersox, Bonnie Dunbar, Richard Richards, Carl Meade, Eugene Trinh, Lawrence DeLucas

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-50), launched June 25, 1992, was the first flight of the U.S. Microgravity Laboratory and the first to land at Kennedy Space Center due to bad weather at Edwards caused by the remnants of Hurricane Darby.  Its crew consisted of Commander Richard Richards, Pilot Kenneth Bowersox, Bonnie Dunbar, Ellen Baker, Carl Meade, Lawrence DeLucas and Eugene Trinh (the first Vietnamese astronaut).