SIDNEY M. GUTIERREZ (COLONEL, USAF, RET.) 

NASA ASTRONAUT (FORMER)

PERSONAL DATA: Born June 27, 1951, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Married to 

the former Marianne Sue Cremer of Jefferson City, Missouri. They have three 

children. Recreational interests include camping, woodworking, and racquetball. 

EDUCATION: Graduated from Valley High School, Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 

1969; received a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. 

Air Force Academy in 1973, and a master of arts degree in management from Webster 

College in 1977.

ORGANIZATIONS: Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, the Air 

Force Association, the U.S. Air Force Academy Association of Graduates, and the 

Society of Space Explorers.

SPECIAL HONORS: NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal, NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal, Two NASA Space 

Flight Medals, 1990 Congressional Hispanic Caucus Award, Awarded Aviation Week and Space Technology Aerospace 

Laureate in Space and Missiles for 1991, Hispanic Engineer magazine 1992 Hispanic Engineer of the Year National 

Achievement Award, Aviation Week and Space Technology Citation for Aerospace Laureate in Space and Missiles for 1994, 

1994 selected by Hispanic Business magazine as one of the 100 most Influential Hispanics, selected by Hispanic Magazine for 

the 1995 Hispanic Achievement Award in Science, 1995 inductee into the International Space Hall of Fame, Distinguished 

Graduate of the USAF Academy; awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Air Force Meritorious Service Medal, Air 

Force Commendation Medal with 1 Oak Leaf Cluster, National Defense Service Medal, and Air Training Command Master 

Instructor.

EXPERIENCE: Gutierrez was a member of the National Collegiate Championship Air Force Academy Parachute Team with 

over 550 jumps, and a Master Parachutist rating. After graduation from the Academy he completed undergraduate pilot 

training at Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio, Texas. He remained there as a T-38 instructor pilot from 1975 through 1977. 

In 1978 Gutierrez was assigned to the 7th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Hollomon Air Force Base, Alamagordo, New Mexico, 

where he flew the F-15 Eagle. He attended the USAF Test Pilot School in 1981 and was assigned to the F-16 Falcon 

Combined Test Force after graduation. While there, Gutierrez served as primary test pilot for airframe and propulsion testing 

on the F-16 aircraft. Test projects included the F-100 Digital Electronic Engine Control, F-16C & D Model Structural and 

Performance Testing, F-16 Maximum Performance Braking Tests, and F-16 Mobile Arrestment Qualification. 

He has logged over 4,500 hours flying time in approximately 30 different types of airplanes, sailplanes, balloons, and rockets.

NASA EXPERIENCE: Selected by NASA in May 1984, Gutierrez became an astronaut in June 1985. In his first technical 

assignment he served as commander for the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL), flying simulated missions to 

verify Shuttle flight software. Following the Shuttle Challenger accident he served as an action officer for the Associate 

Administrator for Space Flight at NASA Headquarters. His duties included coordinating requests from the Presidential 

Commission and the U.S. Congress during the investigation. In 1986 and 1987, he participated in the recertification of the 

Space Shuttle Main Engines, Main Propulsion System, and External Tank. In 1988, he became the Astronaut Office lead for 

Shuttle software development, verification, and future requirements definition. In 1989 he supported launches of STS-28, 30, 

32, 33 and 34 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 

A veteran of two space flights, he has logged over 488 hours in space. He was the pilot on STS-40 (June 5-14, 1991) and was 

the spacecraft commander on STS-59 (April 9-20, 1994). After his first flight, Gutierrez served as spacecraft communicator 

(CAPCOM) - the voice link between the flight crew and mission control - for STS-42, 45, 46, 49 and 52. In 1992 he became 

the Astronaut Office Branch Chief for Operations Development, overseeing ascent, entry, abort, software, rendezvous, Shuttle 

systems, main engines, solid rocket boosters, external tank, and landing and rollout issues

- more -

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

Biographical Data

 Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

 Houston, Texas 77058
In September 1994, Gutierrez retired from the U.S. Air Force and NASA, returned to his native home of Albuquerque, New 

Mexico, and joined Sandia National Laboratories. From September 1994 to March 1995, he served as Manager for their 

Strategic Initiatives Department. In March he became Manager of the Airborne Sensors and Integration Department in the 

Exploratory Systems Development Center. He also served as Chairman of the Governor’s Technical Excellence Committee 

Spaceport Task Force.

Gutierrez serves on the Board of Directors of the Texas-New Mexico Power Company and Goodwill Industries of New 

Mexico and is a member of the New Mexico Space Center’s Governor’s Commission.

SPACE FLIGHT EXPERIENCE: STS-40 Spacelab Life Sciences (SLS-1), a dedicated space and life sciences mission, 

which launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on June 5, 1991. SLS-1 was a nine-day mission during which the 

crew performed experiments which explored how humans, animals, and cells respond to microgravity and re-adapt to Earth’s 

gravity on return. Other payloads included experiments designed to investigate materials science, plant biology and cosmic 

radiation. Following 146 orbits of the Earth, Columbia and her crew returned to land at Edwards Air Force Base, California, 

on June 14, 1991. Mission duration was 218 hours, 14 minutes, 20 seconds.

STS-59 Space Radar Laboratory (SRL-1), part of Mission to Planet Earth, was an 11-day flight dedicated to the study of the 

Earth and the atmosphere around it. The two primary payloads were the Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-Band Synthetic 

Aperature Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR), and Measurement of Air Pollution from Space (MAPS). The crew completed over 400 

precise maneuvers (a Shuttle record) to properly point the radar, imaged over 400 selected sites with approximately 14,000 

photographs (a Shuttle record) and recorded enough data to fill 26,000 encyclopedias. Areas of investigation included 

ecology, oceanography, geology, and hydrology. Launching on April 9, 1994, from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the 

Endeavour and her crew of six completed 183 orbits of the Earth before landing at Edwards AFB, California, on April 20, 

1994.

JULY 1996

This is the only version available from NASA. Updates must be sought direct from the above named individual.