Jerry Michael Linenger
Jerry Michael Linenger is a retired United States Navy Medical Corps captain, physician, and former NASA astronaut. His career is best known for a demanding long-duration stay aboard the Russian Mir during the Shuttle-Mir program.
- Born
- January 16, 1955
- Died
- N/A
- Birthplace
- Eastpointe, Michigan,United States
Flights
2
Spacewalks
1
EVA time
4 hours, 59 minutes
In space
143 days, 2 hours, 50 minutes
Bio
Linenger graduated from the United States Naval Academy and earned medical and public-health training before NASA selected him with Astronaut Group 14 in 1992. His medical background made him part of NASA's shift toward long-duration human research and operational medicine.
He first flew on STS-64 in 1994. He returned to orbit on STS-81 in 1997, transferred to Mir for Mir EO-22, and came home on STS-84 after more than four months aboard the station.
Linenger's Mir stay included a serious onboard fire, systems problems, and a 4-hour, 59-minute with Vasily Tsibliyev, the first EVA by an American from a foreign space station using a Russian Orlan spacesuit. His mission showed both the value and difficulty of Shuttle-Mir as preparation for the International Space Station. The correct long-duration station record is Mir EO-22, framed through STS-81 launch and STS-84 return.