Duane G. Carey
Encyclopedia
Duane Gene "Digger" Carey (Lieutenant Colonel, USAF) is an engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...

 and former NASA Astronaut. Born April 30, 1957, in Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...

. Married to the former Cheryl Ann Tobritzhofer of Saint Paul, Minnesota. They have two children. He enjoys motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...

 travel, racing motocross
Motocross
Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...

, camping
Camping
Camping is an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilization and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, cabin, a primitive structure, or no...

, home-schooling his children, and reading science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

. His parents reside in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...

. His mother resides in Saint Paul Minnesota. His father is deceased.

Education

Graduated from Highland Park High School
Highland Park High School (Minnesota)
Highland Park Senior High School is a public secondary school in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States serving grades 9 through 12. It is located in the Highland Park neighborhood....

, Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1975; received a Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...

 degree
Academic degree
An academic degree is a position and title within a college or university that is usually awarded in recognition of the recipient having either satisfactorily completed a prescribed course of study or having conducted a scholarly endeavour deemed worthy of his or her admission to the degree...

 in Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics and a Master of Science
Master of Science
A Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...

 degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...

 in 1981 and 1982, respectively. Member of the National Space Society
National Space Society
The National Space Society is an international nonprofit 501, educational, and scientific organization specializing in space advocacy...

, American Motorcyclist Association
American Motorcyclist Association
The American Motorcyclist Association is an American not-for-profit organization of more than 300,000 motorcyclists that organizes numerous motorcycling activities and campaigns for motorcyclists' legal rights...

, and the Air Force Association
Air Force Association
The Air Force Association is an independent, 501 non-profit, civilian education organization, headquartered in Arlington, Virginia...

.

Pre-NASA career

Carey received his commission from the Reserve Officer Training Corps in 1981 and graduated from Undergraduate Pilot Training in 1983. He flew the A-10A during tours at England Air Force Base
England Air Force Base
England Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base in Louisiana, located Northwest of Alexandria and about Northwest of New Orleans....

, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

, and Suwon Air Base, Republic of Korea. He completed F-16 training in 1988 and was assigned to Torrejon Air Base
Torrejon Air Base
Madrid-Torrejón Airport is a commercial airport in Spain. It is a joint-use facility between the Spanish Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Public Works. The civil part is dedicated primarily to executive and private aviation. The airport is located northeast of Madrid, west of Alcalá de...

, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

. In 1991, he was selected to attend the United States Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...

, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. After graduation in 1992, he worked as an F-16 experimental test pilot and System Safety Officer at Edwards Air Force Base. He has logged over 3700 hours in more than 35 types of aircraft.

NASA career

Carey was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

 in April 1996. He reported to the NASA Johnson Space Center in August 1996. Having completed two years of training and evaluation, he is qualified for flight assignment as a pilot. Initially, Carey was assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Spacecraft Systems/Operations Branch. In 2002 he served as pilot on STS-109
STS-109
STS-109 was a Space Shuttle mission that launched from the Kennedy Space Center on 1 March 2002. It was the 108th mission of the Space Shuttle program, the 27th flight of the orbiter Columbia and the fourth servicing of the Hubble Space Telescope...

. In completing his first space flight, Carey logged over 10 days in space.

Carey retired from NASA in October 2004.

Carey currently teaches schoolchildren about his experience as an astronaut.

Space flight experience

STS-109 Columbia (March 1–12, 2002). STS-109 was the fourth Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...

 (HST) servicing mission. The crew of STS-109 successfully upgraded the Hubble Space Telescope leaving it with a new power unit, a new camera and new solar arrays. HST servicing and upgrade was accomplished by four crewmembers during a total of 5 EVAs in 5 consecutive days. The space walkers were assisted by crewmates inside Space Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle Columbia
Space Shuttle Columbia was the first spaceworthy Space Shuttle in NASA's orbital fleet. First launched on the STS-1 mission, the first of the Space Shuttle program, it completed 27 missions before being destroyed during re-entry on February 1, 2003 near the end of its 28th, STS-107. All seven crew...

. Carey also helped document the EVA activities with video and still images. STS-109 orbited the Earth 165 times, and covered 3.9 million miles in over 262 hours.

Honors

Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and three Air Medals. Also awarded the American Motorcyclist Association Hazel Kolb Brighter Image Award.

Carey's NASA bio

External links

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