Veteran astronauts Michael E. Lopez-Alegria, Pamela A. Melroy and Scott Kelly, will be inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame® at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex on November 13, 2021. The much-anticipated ceremony will honor these three extraordinary individuals who have all demonstrated outstanding accomplishments in furthering NASA's mission of exploration and discovery and have been selected to receive one of the highest honors in their industry. Postponed from the original date due to the pandemic, the November ceremony will see Lopez-Alegria, Melroy and Kelly join the 99 individuals who already hold the esteemed title of U.S. Hall of Fame Astronaut.
Set against the dramatic backdrop of the majestic space shuttle Atlantis, the official ceremony will take place at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex on November 13, 2021, and will be attended by an impressive array of legendary astronauts. The U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame was spearheaded more than 30 years ago by the six surviving Mercury 7 astronauts. In November 2016, a new U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame opened at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, as part of the Heroes & Legends attraction.
Each year, inductees are selected by a committee of Hall of Fame astronauts, former NASA officials, flight directors, historians and journalists. The process is administered by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. To be eligible, an astronaut must have made his or her first flight at least 17 years before the induction. Candidates must be a U.S. citizen and a NASA-trained commander, pilot or mission specialist who has orbited the Earth at least once.
Learn more about this year's incredible inductees and make plans to join us on November 13!
Michael Lopez-Alegria
Alegria logged more than 257 days in space and performed 10 spacewalks totaling 67 hours and 40 minutes of EVA. His missions include STS-73 Columbia, STS-92 Discovery, STS-113 Endeavour, and Expedition 14. He left NASA in March 2012 and currently serves the Vice President of Business Development for Axiom Space, and has been selected to command the crew of Ax-1, the first fully private orbital space mission in human history.
Pamela Melroy
Colonel Melroy logged more than 924 hours, more than 38 days in space. She served as pilot for missions STS-92 Discovery and STS-112 Atlantis. She served as mission commander on STS-120 Discovery making her one of only two women who commanded the space shuttle. Colonel Melroy left NASA in August 2009 and currently serves as Deputy Director, NASA.
Scott Kelly
Kelly has logged more than 520 days in space on four space flight, and currently holds the record for time in orbit by a U.S. Astronaut. His missions include STS-103 Discovery, STS-118 Endeavor, Expeditions 25-26, and a year-long mission encompassing Expeditions 43-46. Kelly retired from NASA March 2016.
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