Victor Glover | |
|---|---|
 Glover in 2023 | |
| Born | Victor Jerome Glover (1976-04-30)April 30, 1976 (age 49) Pomona, California, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Space career | |
| NASA astronaut | |
| Rank | Captain,U.S. Navy |
Time in space | 167 days, 6 hours, 29 minutes |
| Selection | NASA Group 21 (2013) |
TotalEVAs | 4 |
Total EVA time | 26 hours, 7 minutes |
| Missions | SpaceX Crew-1 (Expedition 64/65) |
Mission insignia |    |
Victor Jerome Glover (born April 30, 1976) is aNASA astronaut of the class of2013[1][2] and pilot on thefirst operational flight of theSpaceX Crew Dragon to theInternational Space Station. Glover was aF/A-18 pilot in theU.S. Navy and is a graduate of theU.S. Air Force Test Pilot School.[3] He was a crew member ofExpedition 64, and served as a station systems flight engineer.[4]
Glover was selected as pilot of the crew for theArtemis II flight, planned to circlethe Moon in 2026. If successful, he will be the firstperson of color to fly beyondLow-Earth Orbit.[5][6]
Glover grew up inPomona, California,[7] and graduated fromOntario High School in 1994, where he was a quarterback and running back for the Jaguars, and was a recipient of the 1994 Athlete of the Year Award.[8][9] Glover's interest in science and engineering was nurtured by his father, Victor Glover Sr. Glover's grandfather served in theAir Force during theKorean War period and faced many obstacles that made it difficult for him to pursue a career in aviation.[10]
He attendedCalifornia Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo[11] and received aBachelor of Science degree in general engineering in 1999. While at Cal Poly, Glover became a member of thePhi Beta Sigma fraternity.[9] Additionally, Glover joined theMustangs wrestling team (following his sixth-place finish at theCIF State Championship Meet),[12] and also competed as astudent-athlete for the1996Cal Poly football squad, wearing number 23 as adefensive back.[13]
From 2007 to 2010, he achieved three master's degree from three different institutions. Glover obtained aMaster of Science in Flight Test Engineering fromAir University (United States Air Force) in Edwards Air Force Base, California.[14] He earned a Master of Science inSystems Engineering from theNaval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California[14] and aMaster of Military Operational Art and Science fromAir University in Montgomery, Alabama.[9][14]
Glover holds a certificate in space systems from theNaval Postgraduate School, as well as a certificate in legislative studies from Georgetown University.[9]
Glover is married to Dionna Odom Glover. They have four daughters.[9][15]
Glover was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy in 1999. He attended primary flight training at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, earning his naval aviator wings in 2001. He later trained on the F/A-18C Hornet withVMFAT-101 at MCAS Miramar, San Diego, California. In 2003, he was assigned toVFA-34, based out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. With VFA-34, he embarked on the final deployment of theUSSJohn F. Kennedy in support ofOperation Iraqi Freedom. In June 2006, Glover was selected to attend the United States Air Force Test Pilot School. Following graduation in June 2007, he was designated a test pilot and began his developmental test tour withVX-31, based out of Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California. In 2011, he was assigned toVFA-195 for his department head tour. Stationed atNaval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, VFA-195 embarked on theUSSGeorge Washington in support of maritime operations in the Western Pacific Ocean.[3] At the time of his selection in 2013, Glover was assigned to the personal staff ofJohn McCain as a legislative fellow in Washington, D.C.[16]
During his career, Glover has accumulated 3,000 flight hours in more than 40 aircraft and has completed over 400 carrier arrested landings and 24 combat missions.[9] Glover's callsign is "Ike", given to him by one of his first commanding officers, standing for "I know everything".[11]
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Glover was introduced as one of theAstronaut Group 21 team in June 2013, completing training in 2015.[9]
In August 2018, Glover was introduced as one of theCommercial Crew astronauts, assigned to fly on thefirst operational flight, and the second crewed flight overall, of SpaceX'sCrew Dragon.[17] As part of that mission, he was a crew member on ISSExpeditions 64 and65 for more than six months.[18] Glover is the firstAfrican AmericanISS Expedition crewmember to live on the ISS, not only visit the ISS for a short stay like on theSpace Shuttle as anISS assembly astronaut. According toThe New York Times:[7]
"Mr. Glover's achievement is notable for NASA, which has worked to spotlight the "hidden figures" in its history, but has so far sent only 14 Black Americans to space out of a total of more than 300 NASA astronauts. He will not be the first Black astronaut aboard the station. But those who preceded him from NASA were members of Space Shuttle crews during the station’s construction and only made brief stays on the outpost."[7]
SpaceX Crew Dragon capsuleResilience launched on November 15, 2020, carrying Glover together with two other NASA astronauts (Michael S. Hopkins andShannon Walker) as well asSoichi Noguchi of Japan. They arrived at the space station on November 17.[19] During his stay on theISS, Glover was one of 18 astronauts selected for NASA'sArtemis Program on December 9, 2020.[20]
Glover's first spacewalk, which lasted for more than six hours on January 27, 2021, was a team effort with Hopkins as they worked to upgrade theColumbus module.[21] On his second spacewalk, also with Hopkins, Glover replaced a broken external camera.[18] On Glover's third spacewalk, he andKate Rubins began work to upgrade the station power supply with hardware in preparation for installation of new solar arrays.[22]
On February 24, 2021, NASA recorded a video call from formerU.S. Vice PresidentKamala Harris to Glover, in the space station. According to NASA, "the conversation ranged from the legacy of human spaceflight to observing Earth from the vantage of the space station, Glover’s history-making stay aboard the orbiting laboratory, and preparing for missions from the Moon to Mars".[23]
On April 3, 2023, Glover was announced as the pilot of theArtemis II mission,[24] which is currently planned to flyby the Moon no earlier than April 2026.[6] He is to be joined by NASA astronautsGregory R. Wiseman,Christina Koch, andCanadian Space Agency astronautJeremy Hansen.[5]
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Originally from Pomona, Calif., Mr. Glover graduated with a bachelor's degree in general engineering from California Polytechnic State University in 1999. Over the course of 2007 to 2010, he earned three master's degrees: in flight test engineering, systems engineering and military operational art and science.
Once secure on the arm, and with help from Rubins inside the orbiting laboratory, Glover 'flew' over to the camera's site, with the blue hues of the Atlantic Ocean swirling hazily below. Glover successfully replaced the broken camera on the starboard truss, the first of three cameras to be installed during the spacewalk. To do this, Glover used a pistol grip tool (PGT), which astronauts use to remove and install bolts during spacewalks.
Glover and three crewmates — fellow NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins and Shannon Walker and Japan's Soichi Noguchi — left Earth on Sunday evening (Nov. 15) aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule "Resilience." The launch kicked off Crew-1, SpaceX's first-ever contracted, fully operational astronaut mission to the space station for NASA.
It was the first spacewalk experience for Glover...The spacewalk officially began at 6:28 a.m. ET and ended at 1:24 p.m. ET. It lasted for about six hours and 56 minutes.
Astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover Jr. began their spacewalk outside of the International Space Station at 6:12 a.m. ET and ended at 1:16 p.m. on Sunday. The spacewalk assisted with a continuation of upgrades for the space station orbiting Earth.
In celebration of Black History Month, NASA astronaut Victor Glover welcomed Vice President Kamala Harris to the International Space Station for a virtual chat.
NASA Astronaut Group 20 ← NASA Astronaut Group 21 →NASA Astronaut Group 22 | |||||||
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