Stephen Bowen (astronaut)
- STS- 126 (2008)
- STS- 132 (2010)
- STS- 133 (2011)
Stephen Gerard Bowen ( born February 13, 1964 in Cohasset, Massachusetts) is an American astronaut.
Bowen left the high school in 1982 and began studies at the U.S. Naval Academy ( USNA ) in Maryland. This gave him a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1986. In 1993, he also made it a degree as a marine engineer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Marine service
After leaving the USNA Bowen entered the service of the U.S. Navy and served three years on the USS Parche and submarines USS Pogy. This was followed by the marine engineering studies, which keeps the MIT in cooperation with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. In 1993 he went on the USS Augusta, where he also completed his training as commander of a nuclear submarine four years. He then went into administration and worked in the planning department of USSOCOM in Florida. Before he was assigned in May 2000 as first officer of the USS Virginia, the first submarine of the Virginia class, he controlled as a member of the Board of Inspection & Survey in Virginia the condition of U- boat propulsion.
Astronauts activity
He was selected by NASA as an astronaut in July 2000 and was trained as a mission specialist. On 15 November 2008 he started with the STS-126 mission on his first space flight.
The second flight he graduated with STS -132 last flight of the space shuttle Atlantis. The launch took place on 14 May 2010 Bowen performed two spacewalks by: . One on May 17 with Garrett Reisman, the other on 19 May with Michael Timothy Good.
After a bicycle accident the nominated Mission Specialists Tim Kopra, he was named on 19 January 2011 as the replacement for the crew of mission STS -133. Bowen is from this circumstance the only NASA astronaut who participated in two consecutive flights. He also took over the two planned for copra field work and was on 28 February 2011 and 2 March 2011 together with Al Drew almost 13 hours in free space. Bowen is with more than 47 hours outside a spacecraft in 6th place in the list of astronauts with the most experience with spacewalks.
Private
Bowen is married and has three children.