Happy birthday, Canadian astronaut Dafydd Williams!

Dafydd Williams, born May 16, 1954 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, has been in space twice as an astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency.  He received a Doctor of Medicine and Master of Surgery from McGill University in 1983.

His first trip into space was aboard Columbia (STS-90) as mission specialist in April-May 1998.  While in orbit, Williams and fellow astronauts James Pawelczyk and Jay Buckey appeared on the Canadian television series Popular Mechanics for Kids.

His second and final flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-118) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in August 2007. He performed three EVAs with fellow astronauts Richard Mastracchio and Clayton Anderson for almost 18 hours total.

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut Kathryn Hire!

Kathryn "Kay" Hire, born August 29, 1959 in Mobile, Alabama, has been in space twice.  After getting her Bachelor of Science at the US Naval Academy, she got her Master of Science degree in Space Technology just up the road here at the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, Florida!  She was the first employee of the Kennedy Space Center to be chosen as an astronaut candidate.

Her first mission was aboard Columbia (STS-90) as mission specialist in April-May 1998.  It was the final flight of the European Space Agency's Spacelab module.

Her second and last flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-130) as mission specialist to the International Space Station in February 2010.  The primary payloads were the Tranquility module and the Cupola, a robotic controls station with six windows, providing a 360° view around the ISS.

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut Jay Buckey!

Jay Buckey, Jr., born June 6, 1956 in New York City, New York, went into space once aboard Columbia (STS-90) as payload specialist in April-May 1998.  He conducted experiments with Neurolab, a Spacelab module focusing on the effects of microgravity on the human nervous sytem.

Richard Searfoss, Space Shuttle astronaut, born 1956

Richard Searfoss, born June 5, 1956 in Mount Clemens, Michigan, was a veteran of three space shuttle flights.

His first mission was aboard Columbia (STS-58) as pilot in October 1993.  He and fellow astronaut John Blaha communictated with school children via an on-board ham radio.

His second mission was aboard Atlantis (STS-76) as pilot to Mir in March 1996.  It was the third space shuttle mission to Mir.

His third and final flight was back on Columbia (STS-90) as commander in April-May 1998.  It was the last flight of the European Space Agency's Spacelab module.

He passed away in September 2018.

Columbia (STS-90) launched 1998

STS-90 crew

Front row (L-R): Scott Altman, Richard Searfoss

Last row (L-R): James Pawelczyk, Richard Linnehan, Kathryn Hire, Davydd Williams, Jay Buckey

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-90), launched April 17, 1998, was the final flight of the European Space Agency's Spacelab laboratory module.  Its crew consisted of Commander Richard Searfoss, Pilot Scott Altman, Dafydd Williams (CSA), Kathryn Hire, Richard Linnehan, Jay Buckey and James Pawelczyk.

The mission continued the exploration of the effects of microgravity on the human nervous system.  The crew returned to Earth on May 3.

Happy birthday, Space Shuttle astronaut Richard Linnehan!

Richard Linnehan, born September 19, 1957 in Lowell, Massachusetts, is a veteran of four space shuttle missions.  After receiving a BS in Animal Sciences and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, he completed an internship in exotic animal medicine at the Baltimore Zoo! 

Selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1992, his first flight was aboard Columbia (STS-78) as mission specialist June-July 1996.  It was a preparation flight for the International Space Station.

Linnehan's second flight was aboard Columbia (STS-90) as mission specialist April-May 1998.  The Mammalian Development Team, which I'm sure Linnehan was a part of, experienced an unexpectedly high mortality rate of neonatal rats.  Therefore, they had to reprioritize their experiments.

His third flight was aboard Columbia (STS-109) as mission specialist in March 2002.  It was a servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope and the last flight of Columbia before it disintegrated the following February upon re-entry.

Linnehan's fourth and final flight was aboard Endeavour (STS-123) as mission specialist in March 2008 to the International Space Station.  He performed three EVAs, totaling 21 hours.

Happy birthday, shuttle astronaut James Pawelczyk!

James "Jim" Pawelczyk, born September 20, 1950 in Buffalo, New York, is an astronaut who flew on the Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-90) April 1998. He is the first American astronaut of full-blooded Polish descent to fly in space.  Cosmonaut Miroslaw Hermaszewski was the first Pole in space in 1978.

Pawelczyk got a MS in physiology in 1985 and PhD in biology from the University of North Texas (Go Eagles!) in 1989.  It was his education and background why he was selected for the STS-90 mission, which conducted research on the human neurological system.