Bob Behnken

Robert Louis Behnken, born on July 28, 1970, was an American engineer and a former NASA astronaut. He was also the Chief of the Astronaut Office. Behnken had a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and was a colonel in the U.S. Air Force before joining NASA in 2000.

He flew on Space Shuttle missions STS-123 in 2008 and STS-130 in 2010. He spent over 708 hours in space and more than 55 hours on spacewalks. Behnken was married to fellow astronaut Megan McArthur.

After the Space Shuttle program ended, he led the Astronaut Office from 2012 to 2015. In 2018, he was chosen for the SpaceX Dragon 2 as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. On May 30, 2020, Behnken and astronaut Doug Hurley launched on the Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission. They were the first astronauts to fly on a commercial spacecraft. They traveled to the International Space Station and stayed there for 62 days. During this time, Behnken did four spacewalks with astronaut Christopher Cassidy.

Education

Bob Behnken went to Pattonville High School in Maryland Heights, Missouri. He studied at Washington University in St. Louis and got degrees in mechanical engineering and physics in 1992.

He then went to the California Institute of Technology where he earned more degrees in mechanical engineering. While there, he worked on special control methods for machines. He also shared a teacher with another astronaut, Garrett Reisman.

Air Force career

Before going to graduate school, Bob Behnken studied at Washington University in St. Louis as an Air Force ROTC student. After finishing school, he began his service at Eglin AFB in Florida, working with new weapon systems.

He later went to the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Edwards AFB in California. After graduating, he joined the F-22 test team, helping plan flights and manage tests. During this time, he also flew F-15 and F-16 aircraft to support the F-22 program.

NASA career

Bob Behnken became an astronaut in July 2000 and started training that August. After 18 months, he helped with space shuttle launches and landings at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

In 2006, Behnken lived underwater for seven days for a research mission called NEEMO 11 inside the Aquarius underwater laboratory.

Behnken flew into space twice. In March 2008, he was on the STS-123 mission, which delivered parts to the International Space Station. He did three spacewalks during this trip. His second space journey was on STS-130 in February 2010, delivering more pieces to the space station, and he did three spacewalks again.

In 2012, Behnken became Chief of the Astronaut Office until 2015. In 2020, he was part of the first test flight of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, known as SpX-DM2. This mission connected with the International Space Station, and he returned to Earth in August 2020. Behnken retired from NASA in November 2022.

Personal life

Bob Behnken is married to astronaut Megan McArthur, and they have one son. Behnken has an amateur radio license with the call sign KE5GGX. His wife flew on the Crew-2 mission in the same Dragon capsule and seat that he used during the Demo-2 mission. She returned from the International Space Station in November 2021.

Awards and honors

Bob Behnken received many awards for his work. He was named an Outstanding Mechanical Engineering Senior at Washington University in 1992. He was a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow from 1993 to 1996. He was recognized as the Company Grade Officer of the Year at the Air Force Research Laboratory in 1997. He earned several medals from the Air Force.

In 2023, Behnken was given the Congressional Space Medal of Honor for his mission to the International Space Station in 2020. Two ships used by SpaceX were named after him and his crewmate, Doug Hurley, for their achievements.