Former astronaut Dr. Story Musgrave speaking at Berea College Sept. 13

During a 30 year career spanning the Apollo era of the 1960s through the Space Shuttle program of the 1990s, Musgrave is the only astronaut to have flown on all five Space Shuttles. He also is a pilot, surgeon, mechanic, poet and philosopher.

The event is part of Berea College’s Convocation program and is co-sponsored by the Physics and Technology and Industrial Arts Departments, and is free and open to the public.

In 1967, Musgrave was one of just 11 people selected from around 4000 applicants to the astronaut corps. Although he was a pilot, he joined the astronaut corps as one of NASA’s first scientist-astronauts as opposed to earlier candidates who were selected from the ranks of the military.

During his NASA career, Musgrave served as mission specialist for Spacelab flights, experienced the Apollo program moon landings, helped design space suits, life support systems and equipment used for space walks and other extravehicular activities As a trained pilot, he has flown 160 different types of civilian and military aircraft. During his six trips in outer space, Musgrave logged more than 1200 hours in flight. He performed the first space walk off the Shuttle, in 1983 on the maiden voyage of the Space Shuttle Challenger, during his fifth mission, as commander of the Shuttle Endeavor, he led the successful repair and restoration of the damaged Hubble Telescope. His final space mission was in 1996, flying on the Space Shuttle Columbia.

The Massachusetts native’s training and wide-ranging educational includes service in the U.S. Marine Corps, bachelor’s degrees in mathematics, statistics and chemistry; master’s degrees in operations research and computer programming, physiology and biophysics as well as literature; and a doctorate in medicine.

Central Kentucky is a former home for Musgrave. After earning his M.D. degree from Columbia University in 1964, he served a surgical internship at the University of Kentucky Medical Center in Lexington, then remained in Kentucky on post-doctoral fellowships and earned a master of science degree. From 1967-89, while working for NASA, Musgrave served as a part-time professor of physiology and biophysics at the UK Medical Center.

For more about Musgrave, visit Space Story.