Seated (L-R): Linda Godwin, Thomas Jones, Jay Apt, Michael Clifford
STS-59 mission patch
Space shuttle Endeavour (STS-59) was launched April 9, 1994. Its crew consisted of Commander Sidney Gutierrez, Kevin Chilton, Jay Apt, Michael Clifford, Linda Godwin, and Thomas Jones. The crew was divided into two groups, Red and Blue, and the groups split tasks and research projects throughout the mission.
They returned to Earth eleven days later, after 183 orbits.
Jerome "Jay" Apt III, born April 28, 1949 in Springfield, Massachusetts, is a veteran of four space shuttle flights.
HIs first mission was aboard Atlantis (STS-37) as mission specialist in April 1995. He conducted two EVAs with fellow astronaut Jerry Ross for over 10 hours.
His second flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-47) as mission specialist in September 1992. The mission included two experiments prepared by an all-girls school in Kent, UK.
Apt's third mission was aboard Endeavour (STS-59) as mission specialist in April 1994. He exchanged greetings with the cosmonauts aboard the Mir space station.
His fourth and final flight was aboard Atlantis (STS-79) as mission specialist to Mir in September 1996. It was the first shuttle mission to dock with a completed Mir space station.
Kevin Chilton, born November 3, 1954 in Los Angeles, California, has been in space three times.
His first trip into space was aboard Endeavour (STS-49) as pilot in May 1992. It was the first time an EVA involved three astronauts.
His second trip was aboard Endeavour (STS-59) as pilot in April 1994. The Discovery Channel chronicled the launch for a special on the Space Shuttle program.
His third and final trip was aboard Atlantis (STS-76) as commander in March 1996. It was the third shuttle mission to dock with the space station Mir.
Sidney Gutierrez, born June 27, 1951 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, is a veteran of two space shuttle missions. NASA selected him in May 1984 and he became an astronaut in June 1985.
His first flight was aboard Columbia (STS-40) as pilot in June 1991. He spent a little over 9 hours in space.
His second and final mission was aboard Endeavour (STS-59) as commander in April 1994. He spent over 5 days in space. He retired from NASA shortly after.
Linda Godwin, born July 2, 1952 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, is a veteran of four space shuttle flights. After getting her doctorate in physics, she joined NASA in 1980 and became an astronaut in 1986.
Her first flight was on Atlantis (STS-37) as mission specialist in April 1991.
Her second flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-59) as mission specialist in April 1994. She assisted in photographing supersites, places NASA has identified to track a variety of contributors to track climate change. She took clear pictures of Chickasha, Oklahoma(!), one of 19 supersites.
Her third mission was on Atlantis (STS-76) in March 1996 to the space station Mir, during which she performed the first U.S. spacewalk around two docked spacecraft with fellow astronaut Michael Clifford.
Her fourth and final mission was aboard Endeavour (STS-108) in December 2001. She and fellow astronaut Daniel Tani completed a four hour, 12 minute spacewalk to install insulation on the International Space Station's main solar arrays.
Godwin was married to fellow astronaut Steven Nagel until his death in 2014.
Thomas Jones, born January 22, 1955 here in Baltimore, Maryland, is a veteran of four (magic number!) space shuttle flights. He graduated from high school in Essex and got his Bachelor's Degree from the United States Air Force Academy. While serving 6 years in the Air Force, he got pilot training in Oklahoma! Wikipedia doesn't say where, though.
His first flight was on Endeavour (STS-59) in April 1994 as mission specialist. His second flight was also on Endeavour (STS-68) September-October 1994 as mission specialist.
He was scheduled to conduct two EVAs during his third mission on Columbia (STS-80) with fellow astronaut Tammy Jernigan in November-December 1996. However, problems with the airlock hatch resulted in both being cancelled.
His fourth and final mission was on Atlantis (STS-98) in February 2001 to the International Space Station. This time he completed three successful EVAs totaling over 19 hours in space.
Michael "Rich" Clifford, born October 13, 1952 in San Bernadino, California, is a veteran of three space shuttle flights and one of the first astronauts to perform an EVA between two docked spacecraft.
His first trip to space was aboard Discovery (STS-53) in December 1992. It was a mission supporting the Department of Defense.
His second flight was on Endeavour (STS-59) in April 1994.
His third and final trip to space was aboard Atlantis (STS-76) in March 1996. During this trip, he and fellow astronaut Linda Godwin performed the first EVA between two docked spacecraft, Atlantis and the space station Mir.
Clifford was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 1994.
Sidney McNeill Gutierrez is an astronaut born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which makes him the first Hispanic astronaut born in the U.S.A.! The previous Hispanic astronauts had been born elsewhere and some of them immigrated to the U.S., becoming naturalized citizens before going into space.
He has a degree in aeronautical engineering from the Air Force Academy and was a member of their Parachute Team with over 550 jumps. He became an astronaut for NASA in 1985 and has flown on two Space Shuttle missions.
His first trip into space was as pilot for Columbia (STS-40) in June 1991. It was also the first mission dedicated completely to life sciences and the first to carry 3 women crew members.
His second mission was as commander on the Endeavour (STS-59) in April 1994. The mission's objective was to study the Earth and her atmosphere.
