Happy birthday, astronaut Gregory Harbaugh!

Gregory Harbaugh, born April 15, 1956 in Cleveland, Ohio, went into space four times. 

His first mission was aboard Discovery (STS-39) as mission specialist in April 28, 1991. The mission was dedicated to the US Department of Defense. He spent over 8 days in space, returning to Earth on May 6.

His second flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-54) as mission specialist launched January 13, 1993. During the mission, Harbaugh and fellow astronaut Mario Runco conducted a 5 hour EVA in the cargo bay to advance NASA's understanding of working in space. He spent almost 6 days in space, returning to Earth January 19.

His third mission was aboard Atlantis (STS-71) as mission specialist to the Russian space station Mir, the third mission in the Shuttle-Mir program, launched June 27, 1995. He spent almost 10 days in space, returning to Earth, July 7. 

His fourth and final trip into space was aboard Discovery (STS-82) as mission specialist, launched February 11, 1997.  It was the second mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope.  He and fellow astronaut Joseph Tanner conducted two EVAs during the mission for a total of about fifteen hours.  He spent almost 10 days in space before returning to Earth on February 21.

Happy birthday, astronaut Susan Helms!

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.

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut Donald McMonagle!

Donald McMonagle, born May 14, 1952 in Flint, Michigan, is a veteran of three space flights. 

His first flight was aboard Discovery (STS-39) as mission specialist in April-May 1991.  The mission carried a payload of experiments for the Department of Defense.

His second flight was as pilot on Endeavour (STS-54) in January 1993. 

His third and final flight was aboard Atlantis (STS-66) as commander in November 1994. 

He spent more than 25 days total in space.

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut John Casper!

John Casper, born July 9, 1943 in Greenville, South Carolina, is a veteran of 4 space shuttle flights.  After getting a Maser of Science degree in Astronautics from Purdue University in 1967, he attended U.S. Air Force to become a fighter pilot. He flew 229 combat missions in the Vietnam War. 

He served as pilot on his first space flight on Atlantis (STS-36) February-March 1990.  It was a Department of Defense flight so its payload was confidential.

His second flight was as commander on Endeavour (STS-54) January 1993, during which the fifth Tracking and Data Relay Satellite was deployed.

Casper was assigned as commander aboard Columbia (STS-62) in March 1994.  The landing of the mission was chronicled by the Discovery Channel for a special featuring the Space Shuttle program.

His fourth and final mission was as commander aboard Endeavour (STS-77) in May 1996.  A Coca-Cola fountain dispense with Coca-Cola and Diet Coke was taken aboard. 

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut Mario Runco!

Mario Runco Jr., born January 26, 1952 in the Bronx, New York, is a U.S. Navy Officer and an astronaut, a veteran of three space shuttle flights.

His first mission into space was aboard Atlantis (STS-44) in November 1991 as mission specialist to deploy a Defense Support Program satellite. 

His second mission was on Endeavour (STS-54) in January 1993 as mission specialist. He and Greg Harbaugh conducted a 4.5 hour EVA to evaluate the limits of human performance during extravehicular activities.  This was in anticipation of building the International Space Station.

His third and final flight was as mission specialist on Endeavour (STS-77) in May 1996.  Runco made several appearances on Sesame Street as part of his Physics of Toys scenes.

Endeavour (STS-54) launched 1993

Left to right: Mario Runco, John Casper, Don McMonagle, Susan Helms, Greg Harbaugh

 Mission patch

Space Shuttle Endeavour launched January 13, 1993 on its third mission (STS-54). Her crew was Commander John Casper, Pilot Donald McMonagle, Mission Specialist 1 Mario Runco, Jr., Mission Specialist 2 Gregory Harbaugh and Mission Specialist Susan Helms.

On the fifth day of the mission, Mario Runco and Greg Harbaugh spent almost 5 hours in the open cargo bay conducting space-walking tests to show how people could work in space.

Endeavour returned January 19.