Dale Allan Gardner
Dale Allan Gardner was a United States Navy captain, naval flight officer, engineer, and NASA astronaut best remembered for the dramatic STS-51-A satellite recovery . He flew two shuttle missions in the early operational shuttle era.
- Born
- November 8, 1948
- Died
- February 19, 2014
- Birthplace
- Fairmont, Minnesota,United States
Flights
2
Spacewalks
2
EVA time
12 hours, 14 minutes
In space
14 days, 52 minutes
Bio
Gardner earned an engineering physics degree from the University of Illinois and entered the Navy, where he became a flight officer and test-related aviation specialist. NASA selected him in the 1978 astronaut class.
His first flight, STS-8, was the shuttle program's first night launch and landing. His second, STS-51-A, deployed two satellites and then recovered Palapa B2 and Westar 6, the first time satellites were retrieved from orbit and brought back to Earth for repair.
During STS-51-A, Gardner and Joseph Allen used the Manned Maneuvering Unit for untethered EVA work. After NASA, Gardner worked in aerospace and renewable-energy management before retiring in Colorado.