Victor J. Glover

Last updated

Victor Glover
Victor Glover in a NASA news conference at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, U.S. on August 8, 2023 (cropped) 3.jpg
Glover at a NASA news conference in 2023
Born
Victor Jerome Glover

(1976-04-30) April 30, 1976 (age 48)
Pomona, California, U.S.
Education
Space career
NASA astronaut
Rank Captain, US Navy
Time in space
167 days, 6 hours, 29 minutes
Selection NASA Group 21 (2013)
Total EVAs
4
Total EVA time
26 hours, 7 minutes
Missions SpaceX Crew-1 (Expedition 64/65)
Mission insignia
 SpaceX Crew-1 logo.svg ISS Expedition 64 Patch.png ISS Expedition 65 Patch.png

Victor Jerome Glover (born April 30, 1976) is a NASA astronaut of the class of 2013 [1] [2] and pilot on the first operational flight of the SpaceX Crew Dragon to the International Space Station. Glover is a captain and F/A-18 pilot in the U.S. Navy and is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School. [3] He was a crew member of Expedition 64, and served as a station systems flight engineer. [4]

Contents

Glover was selected as pilot of the crew for the Artemis II flight, planned to circle the Moon in 2025 if successful he will be the first person of another color to fly beyond Low Earth Orbit. [5]

Early life and education

Glover grew up in Pomona, California, [6] and graduated from Ontario High School in 1994, where he was a quarterback and running back for the Jaguars, and was a recipient of the 1994 Athlete of the Year Award. [7] [8] Glover's interest in science and engineering was nurtured by his father, Victor Glover Sr. Glover's grandfather served in the Air Force during the Korean War period and faced many obstacles that made it difficult for him to pursue a career in aviation. [9]

He attended California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California, [10] and received a Bachelor of Science degree in general engineering in 1999. While at Cal Poly, Glover became a member of the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity. [8] Additionally, Glover joined the Mustangs wrestling team (following his sixth-place finish at the CIF State Championship Meet), [11] and also competed as a student-athlete for the 1996 Cal Poly football squad, wearing number 23 as a defensive back. [12]

From 2007 to 2010, he achieved three master's degree from three different institutions. Glover obtained a Master of Science in Flight Test Engineering from Air University (United States Air Force) in Edwards Air Force Base, California. [13] He earned a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California [13] and a Master of Military Operational Art and Science from Air University in Montgomery, Alabama. [8] [13]

Glover holds a certificate in space systems from the Naval Postgraduate School, as well as a certificate in legislative studies from Georgetown University. [8]

Glover is married to Dionna Odom Glover. They have four daughters. [8] [14]

Military career

Glover was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy in 1999. He attended primary flight training at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, earning his naval aviator wings in 2001. He later trained on the F/A-18C Hornet with VMFAT-101 at MCAS Miramar, San Diego, California. In 2003, he was assigned to VFA-34, based out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. With VFA-34, he embarked on the final deployment of the USS John F. Kennedy in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In June 2006, Glover was selected to attend the United States Air Force Test Pilot School. Following graduation in June 2007, he was designated a test pilot and began his developmental test tour with VX-31, based out of Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California. In 2011, he was assigned to VFA-195 for his department head tour. Stationed at Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, VFA-195 embarked on the USS George Washington in support of maritime operations in the Western Pacific Ocean. [3] At the time of his selection in 2013, Glover was assigned to the personal staff of John McCain as a legislative fellow in Washington, D.C. [15]

During his career, Glover has accumulated 3,000 flight hours in more than 40 aircraft and has completed over 400 carrier arrested landings and 24 combat missions. [8] Glover's callsign is "Ike", given to him by one of his first commanding officers, standing for "I know everything". [10]

NASA career

Glover and his crewmates inside the SpaceX Crew-1 capsule during its approach to the ISS NASA astronauts work aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon (iss064e004754).jpg
Glover and his crewmates inside the SpaceX Crew-1 capsule during its approach to the ISS

Glover was introduced as one of the Astronaut Group 21 team in June 2013, completing training in 2015. [8]

Expedition 64/65

In August 2018, Glover was introduced as one of the Commercial Crew astronauts, assigned to fly on the first operational flight, and the second crewed flight overall, of SpaceX's Crew Dragon. [16] As part of that mission, he was a crew member on ISS Expeditions 64 and 65 for more than six months. [17] Glover is the first African American ISS Expedition crewmember to live on the ISS, not only visit the ISS for a short stay like on the Space Shuttle as an ISS assembly astronaut. According to The New York Times: [6]

"Mr. Glover's achievement is notable for NASA, which has worked to spotlight the "hidden figures" in its history, but has so far sent only 14 Black Americans to space out of a total of more than 300 NASA astronauts. He will not be the first Black astronaut aboard the station. But those who preceded him from NASA were members of Space Shuttle crews during the station’s construction and only made brief stays on the outpost." [6]

Victor Glover at Johnson Space Center (2022) Victor Glover at Johnson Space Center in 2022 02.jpg
Victor Glover at Johnson Space Center (2022)

SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule Resilience launched on November 15, 2020, carrying Glover together with two other NASA astronauts (Michael S. Hopkins and Shannon Walker) as well as Soichi Noguchi of Japan. They arrived at the space station on November 17. [18] During his stay on the ISS, Glover was one of 18 astronauts selected for NASA's Artemis program on December 9, 2020. [19]

Glover's first spacewalk, which lasted for more than six hours on January 27, 2021, was a team effort with Hopkins as they worked to upgrade the Columbus module. [20] On his second spacewalk, also with Hopkins, Glover replaced a broken external camera. [17] On Glover's third spacewalk, he and Kate Rubins began work to upgrade the station power supply with hardware in preparation for installation of new solar arrays. [21]

On February 24, 2021, NASA recorded a video call from Vice President Kamala Harris to Glover, in the space station. According to NASA, "the conversation ranged from the legacy of human spaceflight to observing Earth from the vantage of the space station, Glover’s history-making stay aboard the orbiting laboratory, and preparing for missions from the Moon to Mars". [22]

Official crew portrait for Artemis II, from left: NASA Astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Artemis 2 Crew Portrait.jpg
Official crew portrait for Artemis II, from left: NASA Astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

On April 3, 2023, Glover was announced as the pilot of the Artemis II mission, [23] which is currently planned to flyby the Moon no earlier than April 2026. [24] He is to be joined by NASA astronauts Gregory R. Wiseman, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. [5]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ National Aeronautics and Space Administration. "2013 Astronaut Class". NASA . Retrieved June 19, 2013.
  2. ↑ "NASA's Newest Astronauts Complete Training". NASA. July 9, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Glover, Victor J. (2011). "Talking Back-Weapons, Warfare, and Feedback". Air Force Journal of Logistics. 35 (1–2): 134–142. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  4. ↑ "Expedition 64 Mission Summary" (PDF). NASA. 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 24, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  5. 1 2 Berger, Eric (April 4, 2023). "All of a sudden, NASA's return to the Moon feels rather real". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 Waller, Allyson (November 15, 2020). "Victor Glover will be the first Black crew member on the space station". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2020. Originally from Pomona, Calif., Mr. Glover graduated with a bachelor's degree in general engineering from California Polytechnic State University in 1999. Over the course of 2007 to 2010, he earned three master's degrees: in flight test engineering, systems engineering and military operational art and science.
  7. ↑ "Astronaut candidate from Pomona hopes to someday man space station". dailybulletin.com. Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. June 29, 2013. Retrieved November 17, 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Victor J. Glover, Jr. (Commander, U.S. Navy) NASA Astronaut". nasa.gov. NASA. February 4, 2016. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
  9. ↑ "Victor Jerome Glover Biography: First Black NASA Pilot | BroadBiography". August 7, 2023. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  10. 1 2 Campbell, Carolyn (July 18, 2019). "VISIT HOUSTON CONVERSATION WITH ASTRONAUTS GLOVER & HOPKINS". Visit Houston. Retrieved October 1, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Poly wrestling program brings in 11 newcomers". San Luis Obispo Telegram-Tribune. July 29, 1994. pp. C-2.
  12. ↑ "Rosters". San Luis Obispo Telegram-Tribune (Goal Post ed.). November 2, 1996. p. 7.
  13. 1 2 3 Vicky Stein (April 27, 2021). "Victor Glover: NASA astronaut and SpaceX Crew Dragon pilot". Space.com. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  14. ↑ Ashton, Jennifer. "ABC News' Dr. Ashton interviews NASA astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover on the ISS". youtube.com. ABC News. Event occurs at 25:44. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  15. ↑ Hutcheson, Susannah (May 18, 2017). "How I became an astronaut: Victor Glover". USA Today. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
  16. ↑ "NASA Assigns Crews to First Test Flights, Missions on Commercial Spacecraft". NASA. August 3, 2018. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  17. 1 2 Gohd, Chelsea (February 1, 2021). "Spacewalking astronauts complete a space station battery upgrade years in the making". Space.com. Retrieved February 27, 2021. Once secure on the arm, and with help from Rubins inside the orbiting laboratory, Glover 'flew' over to the camera's site, with the blue hues of the Atlantic Ocean swirling hazily below. Glover successfully replaced the broken camera on the starboard truss, the first of three cameras to be installed during the spacewalk. To do this, Glover used a pistol grip tool (PGT), which astronauts use to remove and install bolts during spacewalks.
  18. ↑ Wall, Mike (November 17, 2020). "Victor Glover becomes 1st Black astronaut to arrive at space station for long-term stay". Space.Com. Retrieved November 17, 2020. Glover and three crewmates — fellow NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins and Shannon Walker and Japan's Soichi Noguchi — left Earth on Sunday evening (Nov. 15) aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule "Resilience." The launch kicked off Crew-1, SpaceX's first-ever contracted, fully operational astronaut mission to the space station for NASA.
  19. ↑ Warner, Cheryl; Dean, Brandi; Sumner, Megan (December 9, 2020). "NASA Names Artemis Team of Astronauts Eligible for Early Moon Missions" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: NASA. Archived from the original on November 18, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  20. ↑ Strickland, Ashley (January 27, 2021). "NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins conduct spacewalk Wednesday". CNN. Retrieved February 27, 2021. It was the first spacewalk experience for Glover...The spacewalk officially began at 6:28 a.m. ET and ended at 1:24 p.m. ET. It lasted for about six hours and 56 minutes.
  21. ↑ Strickland, Ashley (February 28, 2021). "Astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover conducted a Sunday spacewalk". CNN. Retrieved February 28, 2021. Astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover Jr. began their spacewalk outside of the International Space Station at 6:12 a.m. ET and ended at 1:16 p.m. on Sunday. The spacewalk assisted with a continuation of upgrades for the space station orbiting Earth.
  22. ↑ Etkind, Mark (February 27, 2021). "Vice President Kamala Harris Calls NASA Astronaut Victor Glover". NASA. Retrieved February 27, 2021. In celebration of Black History Month, NASA astronaut Victor Glover welcomed Vice President Kamala Harris to the International Space Station for a virtual chat.
  23. ↑ "Watch Live: NASA announces astronauts for Artemis II moon flyby mission". Youtube. CBS News. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
  24. ↑ Donaldson, Abbey A. (December 5, 2024). "NASA Shares Orion Heat Shield Findings, Updates Artemis Moon Missions". NASA. Retrieved December 5, 2024.

Bibliography

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