Sept 30, 2008

John Yembrick Headquarters, Washington
202-358-4715 john yembrick-1@nasa gov

Nicole Cloutier-Lemasters Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 nicole cloutier-1@nasa gov

RELEASE: 08-250

NASA ASSIGNS CREW FOR SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY'S STS-129 MISSION

WASHINGTON -- NASA has assigned the crew for space shuttle Discovery's STS-129 mission The flight will deliver two experiment racks to the International Space Station

Marine Col Charlie Hobaugh will command the mission, which is targeted to launch in October 2009 Navy Capt Barry Wilmore will serve as the pilot Mission Specialists are Robert Satcher, Navy Capt Michael Foreman, Marine Lt Col Randy Bresnik and Leland Melvin Wilmore, Satcher and Bresnik will be making their first trips to space

The mission will return Canadian Space Agency astronaut and station crew member Robert Thirsk to Earth This is slated to be the final space shuttle crew rotation flight to or from the space station

Discovery will deliver parts to the space station, including two spare gyroscopes The mission will feature four spacewalks Hobaugh flew as the pilot on STS-104 in 2001 and STS-118 in 2007 He was born in Bar Harbor, Maine Hobaugh earned a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from the U S Naval Academy He was selected as an astronaut in 1996

Wilmore was born in Murfreesboro, Tenn , and grew up in Mt Juliet He has bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering from Tennessee Technological University, and a master's degree in aviation systems from University of Tennessee He was selected as an astronaut in 2000

Foreman was born in Columbus, Ohio, but considers Wadsworth his hometown He earned a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from the U S Naval Academy and a master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the U S Naval Postgraduate School Foreman flew as a mission specialist on STS-123 in 2008 and performed three spacewalks He was selected as an astronaut in 1998

Satcher was selected as an astronaut in 2004 He earned a doctorate in chemical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology He also is a graduate of Harvard Medical School He was born in Hampton, Va

Bresnik, also selected as an astronaut in 2004 He was born in Fort Knox, Ky , but considers Santa Monica, Calif , his hometown Bresnik earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from The Citadel and a master's degree in aviation systems from the University of Tennessee

Melvin flew as a mission specialist on the STS-122 mission in 2008 He was born in Lynchburg, Va Melvin earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from the University of Richmond and a master's degree in materials science engineering from the University of Virginia He was selected as an astronaut in 1998

Thirsk will be concluding his long-duration stay on the station when STS-129 launches He is scheduled to arrive at the complex in May 2009 aboard a Soyuz spacecraft and serve as a flight engineer during parts of Expeditions 20 and 21

Video of the STS-129 crew members will air on NASA Television's Video File For downlink and scheduling information and links to streaming video, visit:

http://www nasa gov/ntv

For complete astronaut biographical information, visit:

http://www jsc nasa gov/Bios

For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit:

http://www nasa gov/shuttle

-end-

To subscribe to the list, send a message to: hqnews-subscribe@mediaservices nasa gov To remove your address from the list, send a message to: hqnews-unsubscribe@mediaservices nasa gov

The following information is a reminder of your current mailing list subscription:

You are subscribed to the following list: [list_name]

using the following email: example@example.com

You may automatically unsubscribe from this list at any time by visiting the following URL:

http://www aus-city com/cgi-bin/dada/plugins/dada_bridge pl/u/[list]/

If the above URL is inoperable, make sure that you have copied the entire address Some mail readers will wrap a long URL and thus break this automatic unsubscribe mechanism

You may also change your subscription by visiting this list's main screen:

<[program_url]/list/[list]>

If you're still having trouble, please contact the list owner at:

<mailto:[list_owner_email]>

The following physical address is associated with this mailing list:

[physical_address]