Daniel C. Burbank

• STS- 106 (2000)
• STS- 115 (2006)
• Soyuz TMA- 22 (2011/2012)   ISS Expedition 29
• ISS Expedition 30

Christopher Daniel " Dan " Burbank ( born July 27, 1961 in Manchester, Connecticut) is an American astronaut.

Life

Burbank grew up in the small town of Tolland, where his parents still live today. After the completion of Tolland High School in 1979, he undertook for the U.S. Coast Guard ( USCG). This paid for his studies at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London. In May 1985, he took his degree as Bachelor in the Department of Electrical and appeared as a deck officer and law enforcement officer his service on the " USCGC Gallatin " to. This cutter the Coast Guard stationed 115 meters long and in South Carolina. After one and a half years he was trained in Florida as a helicopter pilot and completed the training in February of the following year with highest honors from.

Burbank was subsequently transferred to North Carolina at the Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City. First, he was a pilot in the Air Rescue Sikorsky helicopters of the type HH- 3F " Pelican " and HH- 60J " Jayhawk " and later an instructor. At the same time he was preparing to study as an aerospace engineer. He attended in Daytona Beach ( Florida), the Embry -Riddle Aeronautical University. This oldest existing school for aviation (founded 1925) presented him in 1990 with a master.

In July 1992, Burbank left the USCG Base Elizabeth City. He came to Cape Cod in Massachusetts, where he worked as a pilot, technicians and trainers on the HH- 60J helicopter. Three years later he was transferred to Alaska to Coast Guard Air Station Sitka. In addition to its function as a pilot and technician, he trained there in the wilderness his colleagues in theoretical and practical courses on survival techniques. In total, he has over 1,800 missions in the USCG - 300 of them as air Savior - look back.

Astronauts activity

Astronomy and space were originally Burbank no more than a hobby. Its original purpose was the sea. He went to primary school because he already knew that he once wanted to save the lives of people. The decision to want to be spaceman came late and is associated with a name: Bruce Melnick - the 1987 selected, first astronaut from the ranks of the Coast Guard - had one day to the Elizabeth City - Base paid a visit. Burbank chatted with Melnick and afterwards was so impressed that he competed at NASA.

Right the first time came Burbank in the final round of applicants and was invited in January 1992 to Houston ( Texas) at the Johnson Space Center (JSC ) to tests and interviews. Nevertheless, he was initially rejected. Finally, It was not until his third application he had success and was selected as an astronaut.

Burbank was presented with the 16th group of NASA astronauts in May 1996, the public that the largest group of 1978 formed with a thickness of 35 candidates for the legendary " Thirty Five New Guys". He was one of the total of 2,432 candidates who met the formal selection criteria. It emerged 123 finalists that homed to the compulsory tests between October 1995 and February 1996 at the JSC.

In mid-August 1996, the 16th Group began its two-year basic training at JSC. After Burbank was a full-fledged mission specialist and worked in the planning department of the Astronaut Office. He was responsible for the integration of hardware and software for the International Space Station (ISS) and traveled constantly back and forth between Houston and Moscow. He also took in November 1998 at a meeting of leading scientists in part ( geologists, biologists, chemists ) at JSC. Together with representatives of NASA ( mission planners, trainers, astronauts ), they discussed future space flights to Mars.

With STS -106 Burbank undertook his first space flight in September 2000. The preparation represented a particular challenge, not only because he was a freshman, but because the time available with only half a year was less than half as long as usual for him. Only in the spring of 2000 it was decided to undertake the mission to the ISS in addition to the program. During the flight, helped Burbank to reload the approximately three tons of equipment that brought the Atlantis to equip the space station. In addition, he supported from his colleagues Ed Lu and Yuri Malenchenko from the cockpit, as they perform a spacewalk.

After the flight, Burbank worked as a speaker connection in the control center in Houston until he began training for his second mission. He was appointed in February 2002 as a mission specialist of STS -115 Shuttle company, which began on 9 September 2006. In six days the crew of Atlantis mounted the 16 -ton P3/P4 element. Thus, the space station was the second of four solar modules. During this flight, Burbank conducted a spacewalk. Together with the Canadian Steve MacLean he prepared in seven hours before the two solar panels on their work by he removed the protective cover and transport fixtures. The mission went to twelve days to an end.

In October 2009, Burbank was nominated for an extended stay aboard the ISS. He started 14 November 2011 on Soyuz TMA -22 and works as a flight engineer of the ISS Expedition 29 After the previous ISS Commander Mike Fossum had left the ISS, Burbank took over the command of the ISS Expedition 30 The landing took place on 27 April. , 2012.

Private

Burbank is married. He and his wife Roslyn have two children.