Terence T. Henricks facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tom Henricks
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| Born |
Terence Thomas Henricks
July 5, 1952 Bryan, Ohio, U.S.
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| Space career | |
| NASA astronaut | |
| Rank | Colonel, USAF |
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Time in space
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42d 18h 38m |
| Selection | NASA Group 11 (1985) |
| Missions | STS-44 STS-55 STS-70 STS-78 |
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Mission insignia
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Terence Thomas "Tom" Henricks, born on July 5, 1952, is a retired Air Force colonel and a former NASA astronaut. He flew on four exciting Space Shuttle missions, spending many days in space!
Contents
About Tom Henricks
Tom Henricks was born in Bryan, Ohio. He grew up in Woodville, Ohio, which he considers his hometown. He finished Woodmore High School in 1970.
His Education Journey
Tom studied Civil Engineering at the United States Air Force Academy. He earned his first degree there in 1974. Later, in 1982, he received a Master's degree from Golden Gate University. Tom is married to Rebecca and they have three children. They live in Blanco, Texas.
Amazing Awards and Honors
Tom Henricks has received many special awards for his bravery and hard work. These include:
- The Distinguished Flying Cross
- The NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal
- The Defense Superior Service Medal
- Four NASA Space Flight Medals, one for each mission
- An honorary Doctor of Science degree from Defiance College
- He was named a top pilot in training and for flying the F-16 jet.
- He was also added to the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame.
His Military and Flying Adventures
Tom Henricks started his pilot training at Craig Air Force Base in Alabama. He learned to fly the F-4 Phantom II jet. He flew this jet in squadrons in England and Iceland.
Becoming a Test Pilot
In 1980, he moved to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. After attending the Air Force Test Pilot School in 1983, he became an F-16C test pilot. This means he flew new or changed planes to see how well they worked. He has flown 30 different types of aircraft! Tom has spent over 6,000 hours flying. He also has a special rating as a Master Parachutist and has made 749 parachute jumps.
Tom's NASA Career
NASA chose Tom Henricks to be an astronaut in June 1985. He officially became an astronaut in July 1986. He helped with many important tasks at NASA.
Key Roles at NASA
Tom helped check and approve Space Shuttle landing sites around the world. He also worked on the Shuttle's computer systems. He was the lead astronaut for testing the Shuttle's electronics. He even directed how astronauts helped develop and operate the Space Shuttle. Tom was a commander on two Space Shuttle missions and a pilot on two others. He was the first person to spend over 1,000 hours as a Space Shuttle pilot or commander! Tom left NASA in 1997.
His Space Missions
Tom Henricks flew on four different Space Shuttle missions. Each one was a big adventure!
STS-44: A Secret Mission
STS-44 was launched on November 24, 1991, aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis. The main goal was to put a special satellite into space. This mission lasted for 110 trips around Earth. It landed on December 1, 1991, in California.
STS-55: German Spacelab Mission
STS-55, also called the German D-2 Spacelab mission, launched on April 26, 1993. It flew on the Space Shuttle Columbia. This mission lasted 10 days. The astronauts did 89 experiments! These experiments covered many areas like making new materials, studying life in space, and mapping Earth.
STS-70: Deploying a Satellite
STS-70 launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 13, 1995. It returned on July 22, 1995. During 142 orbits around Earth, the crew did many experiments. They also put the last NASA Tracking and Data Relay Satellite into space. This mission was special because all the crew members were from Ohio!
STS-78: Longest Shuttle Mission (at the time)
STS-78 launched on June 20, 1996, and landed on July 7, 1996. It was the longest Space Shuttle mission at that time, lasting 16 days! (Another mission broke its record later that year.) This mission included studies from 10 different countries. It was the first mission to combine studies on how things act in microgravity (very low gravity) and how space affects living things. This mission helped plan for future studies on the International Space Station.
