| XS-11 (The Excess Eleven) | |
|---|---|
 Group 6 astronauts. Back row, L-R: Henize, England, Holmquest, Musgrave, Lenoir. Front row, L-R: Chapman, Parker, Thornton, Llewellyn. Flanking the group are Allen (left) and O'Leary (right) | |
| Year selected | 1967 |
| Number selected | 11 |
← 5 (1966) 7 (1969) → | |
NASA Astronaut Group 6 (the "XS-11", "Excess Eleven") was a group of elevenastronauts announced byNASA on August 11, 1967, the second group of scientist-astronauts.Given the lack of post-Apollo program funding, with theApollo Applications Program being absorbed into theSkylab program, and NASA's existing surplus of astronauts, they did not expect any of the group to fly in space. Director of Flight Crew OperationsDeke Slayton had planned to hire 20 to 30 new scientist-astronauts, but NASA found that only 11 of the 923 applicants were qualified, and hired them all.
When the group reported to theManned Spacecraft Center, Slayton told them that "We don't need you around here". He offered to accept their resignations, and promised ground assignments if they did not quit, but warned them to not fool themselves that they would soon fly in space. With self-deprecation, the men named themselves the "XS-11", or "Excess Eleven".
The group would be the last group selected by NASA for over a decade. The seven members who stayed with NASA after the Apollo Program ended went on to form the core of earlySpace Shuttlemission specialists, accomplishing a total of 15 flights between 1982 and 1996.
By 1966,NASA had formulated ambitious plans for theApollo Applications Program (AAP) that would follow theApollo program. These called for Apollo hardware to be used to create space stations in Earth and lunar orbit, the development of aSpace Shuttle to service them, and further visits to the Moon, as many as six a year, leading to the establishment of permanent bases there. Plans called for no less than 45 crewed missions, utilizing 19Saturn V and 26Saturn IB rockets. There would be three orbital workshops, three orbital laboratories and fourApollo Telescope Mounts. The first AAP launch was expected to occur as early as April 1968 if the Moon landing went well. Each orbital laboratory was expected to be visited by two or three crews.[1][2][3]
Slayton estimated that he would need 24astronauts to fly the scheduled Apollo missions, and he had 31 on hand from the selections conducted in1959,1962,1963 and1965. This was barely sufficient for Apollo, but not enough to allow AAP missions to be flown at the same time. While Slayton and other NASA officials held private doubts about whether AAP would be approved and flown as planned, it was important that it would not be delayed or sidetracked by a shortage of astronauts. To carry out the program,nineteen pilot astronauts were selected in 1966. NASA also decided to augment the scientist astronauts selected in 1965 with a second intake.[1][4]
NASA issued a call for applications for scientist astronauts on September 26, 1966.[5] TheNational Academy of Sciences (NAS) would conduct initial screening of candidates and forward their applications to NASA for selection.[6] Accompanying the press release was a statement fromGene Shoemaker, the chairman of the NAS selection panel, which said:
An early Apollo mission will place an astronaut on the surface of the Moon to observe first hand both a wholly new environment and unknown phenomena. Subsequent flights may provide the opportunity to carry out long-term studies from manned orbiting laboratories above the Earth's atmosphere in astronomy, solar physics, magnetic fields and energetic particles; or, viewing the Earth from space, in meteorology, oceanography and geology. Release from the Earth's gravity will permit biologists and physicians to conduct sophisticated experimentation on the nature and properties of fundamental biological processes. A vast scientific frontier will be thus opened to exploration by competent scientists. The observations will provide the world with new facts and hypotheses in the study of the solar system and life.[5]
Key selection criteria were the same as for the 1965 intake. Candidates had to:
The announcement said that exceptions might be made for outstanding candidates,[5] but height requirement was firm, an artifact of the size of the Apollo spacecraft.[7] Applicants had to provide supporting documentation in the form of academic transcripts, multiple references, a research bibliography and medical history.[6] The deadline for applications was midnight, January 8, 1967.[5] It was expected that between twenty and thirty astronauts would be selected.[6]
By the deadline, 923 applications had been received. The NAS selection panel then went through them, and forwarded 69 on to NASA for consideration. For these candidates, background and security checks were conducted by theUnited States Civil Service Commission. They were then subjected to a week of physical and psychological tests and examinations at the USAF School of Aerospace Medicine atBrooks Air Force Base inSan Antonio, Texas. This reduced the number of candidates to 21.[8]
Interviews were conducted at theManned Spacecraft Center nearHouston, Texas, byMercury Seven astronautDeke Slayton, NASA's Director of Flight Crew Operations; theChief of the Astronaut Office,Alan Shepard;Wilmot N. Hess, the NASA Director of Science and Applications; NASA physician Charles Berry; scientist astronautOwen Garriott;Maxime Faget, the chief engineer of the Apollo Program; and Robert F. Thompson, the head of the Apollo Applications Program.[9] Finally, they were taken toEllington Air Force Base where they were given a test flight in aNorthrop T-38 Talon to measure their degree of comfort with flying.[8] The names of the eleven successful candidates were officially announced on August 4, 1967.[10]
The group were demographically similar to previous astronaut groups: all were male and white, and all were married, seven with children. Two were born outside the United States.[10]William E. Thornton andKarl Henize were over the age limit. They had written to Slayton during the selection process, and Slayton had informed them that the requirement would be waived for specially qualified individuals like themselves, a decision supported by the director of the Manned Spacecraft Center,Robert R. Gilruth, andChris Kraft.[11] The group contained three astronomers, two physicists, a chemist, a geophysicist, an electrical engineer, two physiologists and a physician/physicist.[12]
| Image | Name | Born | Died | Career | ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Joseph P. Allen IV | Crawfordsville, Indiana June 27, 1937 | Allen received aBachelor of Arts degree inmathematics andphysics fromDePauw University in 1959, andMaster of Science and aDoctor of Philosophy degrees in physics fromYale University in 1961 and 1965 respectively. From August 1975 to 1978, Allen served as NASA Assistant Administrator for Legislative Affairs in Washington, D.C. Returning to the Johnson Space Center in 1978, as a senior scientist astronaut, Allen was assigned to the Operations Mission Development Group. He served as a support crew member for the first orbital flight test of the Space Shuttle (Columbia) in April 1981 and was theCAPCOM during the reentry phase for this mission. In 1980 and 1981, he worked as the technical assistant to the director of flight operations. He flew in space as a mission specialist on theSTS-5 Columbia mission in November 1982 and theSTS-51-A Discovery in November 1984. He logged a total of 314 hours in space. He left NASA in 1985. | [13][14] | |
 | Philip K. Chapman | Melbourne, Australia March 5, 1935 | April 5, 2021 | Chapman earned aBachelor of Science degree inphysics andmathematics from theUniversity of Sydney in 1956. He then attended theMassachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States, earning aMaster of Science inaeronautics andastronautics in 1964 and aDoctor of Science ininstrumentation in 1967. He was aRoyal Australian Air Force reservist from 1953 to 1955. He served as mission scientist on theApollo 14 mission before resigning from NASA in July 1972 due to lack of spaceflight opportunities. FirstAustralian American to be selected as an astronaut. | [15][16] |
 | Anthony W. England | Indianapolis, Indiana May 15, 1942 | England receivedBachelor of Science andMaster of Science degrees inEarth sciences andplanetary sciences fromMassachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1965, and aDoctor of Philosophy degree in Earth and planetary sciences from MIT in 1970. He transferred to theU.S. Geological Survey in 1972 before rejoining NASA in 1979, and flew in space as a mission specialist onSTS-51-F Challenger in the July 1985Spacelab mission. From May 1986 to May 1987, he served as a program scientist forSpace Station Freedom (which evolved into theInternational Space Station). From June 1987 to December 1987, he taught remote sensing geophysics atRice University. He retired from NASA in 1988. | [17] | |
.jpg) | Karl G. Henize | Cincinnati, Ohio October 17, 1926 | October 5, 1993 | Henize entered theV-12 Navy College Training Program, which first took him toDenison University in Granville, Ohio, and then to theUniversity of Virginia.World War II ended before he received his Naval commission, so he became a member of theU.S. Naval Reserve, reaching the rank oflieutenant commander. He received aBachelor of Arts degree inmathematics in 1947, and aMaster of Arts degree inastronomy in 1948, from theUniversity of Virginia, while also carrying out research atMcCormick Observatory. He was awarded aDoctor of Philosophy in astronomy in 1954 by theUniversity of Michigan. He flew in space as a mission specialist on the July 1985STS-51-F ChallengerSpacelab mission. He died fromhigh altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) during an ascent ofMount Everest. | [18][19] |
 | Donald L. Holmquest | Dallas, Texas April 7, 1939 | Holmquest received aB.S. inelectrical engineering fromSouthern Methodist University in 1962, andDoctor of Medicine andDoctor of Philosophy degrees inphysiology fromBaylor College of Medicine in 1967 and 1968, respectively, and aJuris Doctor degree from theUniversity of Houston in 1988. He completed initial training and work onSkylab habitability systems and medical experiments, but left NASA in September 1973 following two extended leaves (encompassing post-doctoral training innuclear medicine atBaylor University) due to lack of spaceflight opportunities. | [20] | |
 | William B. Lenoir | Miami, Florida March 14, 1939 | August 26, 2010 | Lenoir received aBachelor of Science degree inelectrical engineering from theMassachusetts Institute of Technology in 1961, aMaster of Science degree in 1962, and aDoctor of Philosophy degree inelectrical engineering and computer science in 1965. He flew in space as a mission specialist onSTS-5 Columbia in November 1982. He resigned from NASA in September 1984 to assume a position with the management and technology consulting firm ofBooz, Allen & Hamilton, but returned in June 1989 as the Associate Administrator for Space Flight, responsible for the development, operating and implementation of the necessary policy for the Space Shuttle and all U.S. government civil launch activities. He resigned from NASA in April 1992. | [21] |
 | J. Anthony Llewellyn | Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom April 22, 1933 | July 2, 2013 | Llewellyn received hisBachelor of Science degree andDoctor of Philosophy degrees inchemistry fromUniversity College, Cardiff, in 1955 and 1958 respectively. He dropped out of flight school and resigned from NASA in September 1968. | [22] |
 | F. Story Musgrave | Stockbridge, Massachusetts August 19, 1935 | Musgrave joined theUnited States Marine Corps in 1953, served as an aviation electrician and instrument technician, and as an aircraft crew chief on board theaircraft carrierUSS Wasp. He received aBachelor of Science degree in mathematics and statistics fromSyracuse University in 1958, aMaster of Business Administration degree inoperations analysis andcomputer programming from theUniversity of California at Los Angeles in 1959, aBachelor of Arts degree in chemistry fromMarietta College in 1960, aDoctor of Medicine degree fromColumbia University in 1964, aMaster of Science degree inphysiology andbiophysics from theUniversity of Kentucky in 1966, and aMaster of Arts in literature from theUniversity of Houston in 1987. He was the first of the group to serve on a backup crew,Skylab 2 in 1973, and was aCAPCOM for theSkylab 3 andSkylab 4 missions. He participated in the design and development of theSpace Shuttleextra-vehicular activity equipment, including spacesuits, life support systems, airlocks andManned Maneuvering Units. From 1979 to 1982, and 1983 to 1984, he was a test and verification pilot in theShuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory at theJohnson Space Center. He flew in space six times: as mission specialist on theSTS-6 Challenger mission in April 1983,STS-51-F ChallengerSpacelab mission in July 1985,STS-33 Discovery mission in November 1989,STS-44 Atlantis mission in November 1991,STS-61 EndeavourHubble Space Telescope Servicing mission as payload commander in December 1993, and theSTS-80 Columbia mission in November 1996. He is the only astronaut to have flown on all five Space Shuttles. He retired from NASA in 1997. | [23] | |
 | Brian T. O'Leary | Boston, Massachusetts January 27, 1940 | July 28, 2011 | O'Leary received aBachelor of Arts degree in physics fromWilliams College in 1961, aMaster of Arts in astronomy fromGeorgetown University in 1964, and aDoctor of Philosophy in astronomy from theUniversity of California, Berkeley, in 1967. He resigned from NASA in April 1968 due to objections to flight training hazards. | [24] |
 | Robert A. R. Parker | New York City December 14, 1936 | Parker received aBachelor of Arts degree in astronomy and physics fromAmherst College in 1958, and aDoctor of Philosophy in astronomy from theCalifornia Institute of Technology in 1962. He flew in space as a mission specialist on twoSpacelab missions, theSTS-9 Columbia mission in November 1983 and theSTS-35 Columbia mission in December 1990. He was director of the Division of Policy and Plans for the Office of Space Flight at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. from January 1991 to December 1991, director of the Spacelab and Operations Program from January 1992 to November 1993, manager of the Space Operations Utilization Program from December 1993 to August 1997, and director of the NASA Management Office at theJet Propulsion Laboratory inPasadena, California, from August 1997 to August 2005. He retired from NASA on August 31, 2005. | [25] | |
 | William E. Thornton | Faison, North Carolina April 14, 1929 | January 11, 2021 | Thornton received aBachelor of Science degree in physics from theUniversity of North Carolina in 1952. Having completedAir Force ROTC training, he served as officer-in-charge of the Instrumentation Lab at the Flight Test Air Proving Ground, and later became a consultant toAir Proving Ground Command. He earned aDoctorate in Medicine from University of North Carolina in 1963. He completed his internship in 1964 at the Wilford Hall USAF Hospital atLackland Air Force Base inSan Antonio, Texas, and then returned to active duty with the United States Air Force, and was assigned to the USAF Aerospace Medical Division atBrooks Air Force Base in San Antonio, where he completed the Primary Flight Surgeon's training in 1964. He flew in space as a mission specialist on theSTS-8 Challenger mission in August 1983 and theSTS-51-B ChallengerSpacelab mission in April 1985. He resigned from NASA effective May 31, 1994. | [26][27] |
While their selection process had been going on, NASA's budget forfiscal year 1968 had been cut.PresidentLyndon B. Johnson had proposed that NASA's budget be increased to $5.1 billion, of which $455 million was for the AAP, butCongress was not receptive. TheApollo 1 fire on January 27, 1967, had shaken its faith in NASA, and the cost of theVietnam War was inexorably rising. NASA's appropriation was cut to $4.59 billion, with AAP receiving only $122 million.[3] When the eleven new astronauts reported for duty on September 18, 1967, they were met by Shepard and Slayton. In his welcome address to the newcomers, Slayton was blunt:
I might as well warn you troops that you won't be seeing any action for quite some time. We've been receiving word from Washington that the budget in the post-Apollo Program will be severely cut again next year and many flights will have to be postponed or scrapped. And it looks like things aren't going to get any better for a long time. Although we'd like to put all of you into space some time, we can't guarantee it, so you may as well face the prospect of long delays and perhaps no flights. We don't need you around here, at least for the time being. I'm saying this just so you'd understand. So bearing this in mind, any of you who feels like he doesn't want to hack this can walk out of the room right now. You'll be a free man and there'll be no misgivings either way.[28]
The new astronaut group started calling themselves the Excess Eleven or XS-11.[29] Assignments for the group were further delayed by the requirement to complete a full year ofUS Air ForceUndergraduate Pilot Training to become qualified as jet pilots like the Group 4 scientists before them. But first there was five months of classroom training, 330 hours of instruction, mainly in the form of lectures and field trips. Many of these were delivered by the astronauts themselves, and there was even a guest lecture on exobiology byCarl Sagan. Normally, there were two lectures per day of two hours duration, with afternoons and every other Friday free to allow the new scientist astronauts to pursue personal projects.[30]
The next phase of their training was flight training. Only Chapman had a private pilot's license, and of the rest only Musgrave had flown a plane before. None had flown jets. While the Excess Eleven had hoped that it would be possible for them to undergo it together, this was considered impractical, as the US Air Force's training facilities were stretched by the needs of the war in Vietnam. Instead they were sent to several different flight schools in Arizona, Oklahoma and Texas.[31] Training commenced with six weeks in the piston engineCessna T-41 Mescalero, then moved on to twenty in the subsonic jetCessna T-37 Tweet, and finally to twenty-seven weeks in theNorthrop T-38 Talon, the aircraft they would be flying for NASA.[32] By this time four astronauts had been killed in accidents involving the T-38.[33]
About a third of each flight school class flunked, were dropped because they developed a fear of flying, or quit, usually because they discovered that they did not like flying.[34] The response of the scientist astronauts was mixed. Chapman found that he really enjoyed flying, especially in the T-38, and came second in his class; Musgrave and Allen topped theirs.[35] O'Leary objected to the hazards of flight training, and after a month of flight training atWilliams Air Force Base, including two solo flights, he decided that he did not like flying. On April 22 he informed a sympathetic Slayton that he had decided to resign from the Astronaut Corps.[36] On August 23, NASA announced that Llewellyn had also tended his resignation after completing the first phase of flight training atReese Air Force Base.[35]
The final phase of their astronaut training involvedscuba diving training with the Navy at theNaval Air Station Key West, desert survival training atFairchild Air Force Base inWashington, jungle survival training atAlbrook Air Force Base in Panama, and water survival training atPensacola Naval Air Station in Florida.[37]
After completing their training, the XS-11 were divided between Apollo and AAP, with Allen, Chapman, England, Henize and Parker assigned to Apollo. A new role, the mission scientist, was created as an interface between the crew and the scientific community, as scientific aspects became more important with the later Apollo missions. The first so designated was England onApollo 13, although owing to the abort of the mission, he was not called upon to perform the role. Starting with Apollo 14, the mission scientist was part of the support crew. Chapman served in the role onApollo 14, Allen onApollo 15, England onApollo 16 and Parker onApollo 17. In addition Henize and Parker also served on the Apollo 15 support crew, and Chapman on that of Apollo 16.[38][39]
Holmquest, Lenoir, Musgrave and Thornton were assigned toSkylab, as AAP was renamed on February 17, 1970.[40] Musgrave (who cultivated a notable passion for flying, eventually accumulating over 17,700 hours in 160 different types of civilian and military aircraft)[23] and Lenoir were the first members of the group to secure potential flight assignments as backup Science Pilots in the Skylab Program.[41] However, Skylab B was canceled and Skylab A abandoned in place after only three missions were flown.[42]
Chapman and Holmquest left the program in July 1972 due to the paucity of flight opportunities.[15][20] England transferred to theUnited States Geological Survey in 1972 before rejoining the Astronaut Corps for a second nine-year stint in 1979.[17] Allen also returned to active duty with the Astronaut Office in 1978 after a stint as director of Legislative Affairs at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., returning one day before theThirty-Five New Guys arrived in order to secure his seniority. Holmquest also requested permission to return in October 1979, but his request was denied.[43] The requirement for scientists to be trained as jet pilots was lifted with the creation of theMission Specialist position in theSpace Shuttle program in 1978.[44]
The seven remaining members of the Excess Eleven all went on to fly at least one Space Shuttle mission. Allen was the first, flying onSTS-5 in Columbia in November 1982, fifteen years after he had been selected as an astronaut. Parker, Allen and Thornton flew two missions, and Musgrave ultimately flew six, the last being in 1996. He also carried out fourextravehicular activities, totaling 26 hours and 19 minutes, and flew on all five Space Shuttles.[45]