Gallery: 2 shuttle astronauts added to Hall of Fame
James Buchli and Janet Kavandi were inducted to the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame in April 2019. Photo Credit: Michael Howard / SpaceFlight Insider
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — Two veteran Space Shuttle astronauts were added to the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame, joining nearly 100 already inducted.
NASA astronauts James Buchli and Janet Kavandi were inducted on April 6, 2019, making them the 18th class of honorees (as was noted by the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex).
“With the era of new space exploration upon us, I am honored to recognize these two individuals who have dedicated their careers to furthering space exploration,” said Therrin Protze, chief operating officer of Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, before the induction ceremony. “Without the dedication and commitment of pioneers such as Buchli and Kavandi we would not be where we are today.”
Buchli, a U.S. Marine with 25 years of service, was selected to be an astronaut in 1978. His first flight occurred in 1985 during Space Shuttle Discovery’s STS-51C mission. He later flew aboard three more shuttle flights (Buchli flew all of his missions on either Challenger or Discovery between 1985 and 1991).
Altogether, Buchli spent 21 days in space before retiring in 1992. Buchli later served as Operations and Utilization Manager for the Space Station, Boeing Defense and Space Group in Houston.
Kavandi spent 24 years with NASA starting in 1994 when she was selected to be an astronaut. She flew aboard three Space Shuttle missions, spending more than 33 days in space, including eight days aboard the International Space in 2001 (as a mission specialist on STS-104). During the STS-104 mission Kavandi helped deliver the Quest airlock to the orbiting laboratory.
In 2008, Kavandi retired from NASA’s Astronaut Corps and is now the director of the agency’s Glenn Research Center in Ohio.
The following photos were taken by SpaceFlight Insider’s visual team and are courtesy of Michael Howard. If you enjoy our coverage and are able, consider supporting us on Patreon to help in our efforts to to bring you fantastic content about the space industry!
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