{"id":52041,"date":"2021-10-06T14:32:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-06T18:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?migration=converted-node-474517"},"modified":"2023-07-26T16:11:45","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T20:11:45","slug":"nasa-announces-astronaut-changes-for-upcoming-commercial-crew-missions","status":"publish","type":"press-release","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-announces-astronaut-changes-for-upcoming-commercial-crew-missions\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA Announces Astronaut Changes for Upcoming Commercial Crew Missions"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-none \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1239\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"NASA crew members of the SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station. Pictured from left are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada.\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg 3264w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=300,182 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=768,465 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=1024,620 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=1536,929 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=2048,1239 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=400,242 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=600,363 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=900,545 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=1200,726 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?resize=2000,1210 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">NASA crew members of the SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station. Pictured from left are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada. <\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\"><strong>Credits: NASA<\/strong><\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p><em><strong>Editor\u2019s note: <\/strong>This release was updated on Oct. 8 to provide additional clarity on Suni Williams, who assigned to the Starliner-1 mission, and updated numbers for people visiting the space station.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>NASA has reassigned astronauts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/astronauts\/biographies\/nicole-a-mann\">Nicole Mann<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/astronauts\/biographies\/josh-a-cassada\">Josh Cassada<\/a> to the agency\u2019s SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station as part of the Commercial Crew Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mann and Cassada will serve as spacecraft commander and pilot, respectively, for the Crew-5 mission. Additional crew members will be announced later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Crew-5 is expected to launch no earlier than fall 2022 on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The duo and their crewmates will join an expedition crew aboard station for a long duration stay to conduct science activities for the benefit of humanity and exploration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cNicole and Josh have done a tremendous job pioneering the training and path forward for astronauts to fly on Boeing\u2019s Starliner spacecraft. They have gained experience that they will take forward as they train to fly in SpaceX\u2019s Crew Dragon spacecraft and serve aboard the International Space Station,\u201d said Kathryn Lueders, associate administrator of the Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. \u201cThe NASA team is fortunate to have two commercial crew partners and will continue to work with Boeing and SpaceX to prepare NASA astronauts and our international partners to fly to and from the International Space Station on U.S. spacecraft.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mann and Cassada previously were assigned to missions on NASA\u2019s Boeing Crew Flight Test and NASA\u2019s Boeing Starliner-1 mission, respectively. NASA decided it was important to make these reassignments to allow Boeing time to complete the development of Starliner while continuing plans for astronauts to gain spaceflight experience for the future needs of the agency\u2019s missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>NASA astronauts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/astronauts\/biographies\/barry-e-wilmore\">Butch Wilmore<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/astronauts\/biographies\/edward-michael-fincke\">Mike Fincke<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/astronauts\/biographies\/sunita-l-williams\">Suni Williams<\/a> will continue to provide experience for Boeing as the agency prepares for NASA\u2019s Boeing Crew Flight Test and Starliner-1 missions. Additional Boeing flight assignments will be made in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mann is a California native and a colonel in the Marine Corps. She earned a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the United States Naval Academy and a Master of Science in mechanical engineering with a specialty in fluid mechanics from Stanford University. She is an F\/A-18 test pilot with more than 2,500 flight hours in more than 25 aircraft. NASA selected Mann as an astronaut in 2013. This will be her first trip to space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt has been the opportunity of a lifetime to train on a brand-new spacecraft, the Boeing Starliner, and it has been fantastic to work with the Boeing team,\u201d Mann said. \u201cI am thrilled to have the opportunity to train on another new spacecraft \u2013 the SpaceX Crew Dragon \u2013 and appreciate the teams at NASA who have made that possible. I am ready to fly and serve on the International Space Station.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cassada grew up in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, and is a physicist and U.S. Navy test pilot. He attended college in Michigan and then completed his Ph.D. research at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory before becoming a naval aviator. Cassada has accumulated more than 4,000 flight hours in over 45 different aircraft. NASA selected him as an astronaut in 2013. This will be his first spaceflight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt has been great to spend the last few years training with the joint Boeing and NASA team, and I am really looking forward to now have a chance to also train with SpaceX on a new spacecraft. Cross training on both programs is a unique opportunity to learn, but also to provide valuable insight to future astronauts flying these spacecraft,\u201d Cassada said. \u201cAnd, of course, Nicole and I are incredibly excited to get to work aboard the International Space Station, executing current operations and also contributing to future exploration beyond low-earth orbit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/station20\">20 years<\/a>, NASA has continuously had astronauts living and working aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and demonstrating new technologies, making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth. As a global endeavor, 246 people from 19 countries have visited the unique microgravity laboratory that has hosted more than 3,000 research and educational investigations from researchers in 108 countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The station is a critical testbed for NASA to understand and overcome the challenges of long-duration spaceflight and to expand commercial opportunities in low-Earth orbit. As commercial companies focus on providing human space transportation services and developing a robust low-Earth orbit economy, NASA is free to focus on building spacecraft and rockets for deep space missions to the Moon and Mars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Follow Mann on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AstroDuke\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Twitter<\/strong><\/a> and Cassada on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/astro_josh\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Twitter<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AstroCassada\/\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Facebook<\/strong><\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/astro_cassada\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Instagram<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For more information on NASA\u2019s Commercial Crew Program, visit:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/commercialcrew\"><strong>https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/commercialcrew<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">-end-<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Joshua Finch<br> Headquarters, Washington<br> 202-358-1100<br> joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov<br> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Megan Dean<br> Johnson Space Center, Houston<br> 281-483-5111<br> <a href=\"mailto:megan.dean@nasa.gov\">megan.dean@nasa.gov<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Editor\u2019s note: This release was updated on Oct. 8 to provide additional clarity on Suni Williams, who assigned to the Starliner-1 mission, and updated numbers for people visiting the space station. NASA has reassigned astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada to the agency\u2019s SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station as part of the [...]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":53318,"template":"","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":[],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"21-129","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"MEDIA ADVISORY","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[]},"categories":[2867,2800,3437,3191,2801,3219,3409,8371,2656,2735,2861,3403,2862,3419,3436],"news-tags":[12373],"internal-terms":[9508,9505],"coauthors":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"NASA Announces Astronaut Changes for Upcoming Commercial Crew Missions","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-announces-astronaut-changes-for-upcoming-commercial-crew-missions\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-announces-astronaut-changes-for-upcoming-commercial-crew-missions\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg"},"articleSection":"NASA Centers & Facilities","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"NASA"}],"creator":["NASA"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Humans in Space","Astronauts","Sunita L. Williams","NASA Headquarters","Barry E. Wilmore","Commercial Crew","Commercial Space","Commercial Space Programs","E. Michael Fincke","Expedition 65","International Space Station (ISS)","Johnson Space Center","Josh A. Cassada","Kennedy Space Center","Nicole Aunapu Mann"],"dateCreated":"2021-10-06T18:32:00Z","datePublished":"2021-10-06T18:32:00Z","dateModified":"2023-07-26T20:11:45Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"NASA Announces Astronaut Changes for Upcoming Commercial Crew Missions\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/nasa-announces-astronaut-changes-for-upcoming-commercial-crew-missions\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2021-10-06T18:32:00Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"NASA Centers & Facilities\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Humans in Space,Astronauts,Sunita L. Williams,NASA Headquarters,Barry E. Wilmore,Commercial Crew,Commercial Space,Commercial Space Programs,E. Michael Fincke,Expedition 65,International Space Station (ISS),Johnson Space Center,Josh A. Cassada,Kennedy Space Center,Nicole Aunapu Mann\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"NASA\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":5,"featured_image":{"id":53318,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/mann-cassada.jpg","title":"mann-cassada","alt":"NASA crew members of the SpaceX Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station. 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