Susan Helms

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Susan Helms
Susan Helms
Country: United States
Organization: NASA
selected on Jan 17, 1990
(13th NASA Group)
Calls: 5 space flights
Start of the
first space flight: 		January 13, 1993
Landing of the
last space flight: 		August 22, 2001
Time in space: 210d 23h 10m
EVA inserts: 1
EVA total duration: 8h 56m
retired on July 2002
Space flights

Susan Jane "Sue" Helms (born February 26, 1958 in Charlotte , North Carolina , USA ) is a former American astronaut and Lieutenant General of the USAF .

education

Helms graduated in 1976, the Park Rose Senior High School in Portland ( Oregon ). She received a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from the United States Air Force Academy in 1980 . In 1985 she earned a Masters in Space Engineering from Stanford University .

Astronaut activity

With the space shuttle Endeavor Helms started as a mission specialist on January 13, 1993 for the STS-54 mission . The main objectives of this mission were the deployment of the $ 200 million Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-F) and experiments in X-ray astronomy with the Diffuse X-ray Spectrometer (DXS).

On September 9, 1994, she took off on the space shuttle Discovery for the STS-64 mission . During this mission, the LITE laser-optical radar system was tested. Another task was the deployment and recovery of the astronomical research satellite SPARTAN -201, a free-flying satellite for researching the solar wind and the solar corona .

As payload commander, Helms flew on the Columbia space shuttle ( STS-78 ) on the longest flight of a space shuttle to date (16d 21h 48 m). The task was weightlessness experiments in the Life and Microgravity Spacelab (LMS), which were required as a basis for future experiments on the International Space Station (ISS).

With the STS-101 mission approx. 1500 kg of equipment, hardware and supplies for the planned first regular crew of the ISS were transported with the help of the Spacehab and the Integrated Cargo Carrier (ICC). Helms was a mission specialist for the rendezvous with the ISS. She was also for the repair of the first module Zarya responsibility of the ISS.

Helms worked on the ISS as a member of ISS Expedition 2 for 163 days . It took off on the space shuttle Discovery ( STS-102 ) on March 8, 2001 for the space station. The Expedition 2 crew installed and tested the Canada-built ISS robotic arm . Helms also installed the Quest airlock brought in with the STS-104 mission . Furthermore, on this mission, she and the Soyuz crew received the first space tourist, Dennis Tito . On August 22, 2001, Helms returned to Earth on the Discovery space shuttle ( STS-105 ).

On March 11, 2001 she set a record with the longest outboard activity (8 h, 56 m) together with Jim Voss .

According to NASA

On June 27, 2002, Helms left the US space agency and resumed active service in the US Air Force . She went to Air Force Space Command (AFSPC), which is located on Peterson Air Force Base , Colorado . There she was department head of the Space Control Division. She then came to Florida and until February 2005 was Vice Commander of the 45th Space Wing at Patrick Air Force Base near Cape Canaveral. She then served as the Assistant Pilot Training Officer at Randolph Air Force Base in Texas . With her promotion to Brigadier General on June 23, 2006, she took over the management of the 45th Space Wing and was responsible for all launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station .

With her promotion to major general on August 2, 2009, Helms moved to the United States Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base , Nebraska . On January 21, 2011, she was promoted to lieutenant general. In 2013, President Obama nominated her as Deputy Commander in Chief of Air Force Space Command. In 2014, Helms retired.

During her active time as a test pilot , she completed flights on more than 30 different types of aircraft for the USAF and the Royal Canadian Air Force .

In 2020, Helms was elected to the National Academy of Engineering .

See also

Web links

Commons : Susan J. Helms  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Helms, Susan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Helms, Susan Jane; Helms, Sue
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American astronaut
DATE OF BIRTH February 26, 1958
PLACE OF BIRTH Charlotte , North Carolina