Positions
| Position | Duties | Examples | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercury | |||
| Pilot | Overall mission success | Mercury Seven |
As a single-seat spacecraft, the astronauts who flew the Mercury missions were referred to simply as "Pilots". Mercury Pilots were required to have experience as a pilot of high-performance jet aircraft and to be no more than 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm) tall and weigh no more than 180 pounds (82 kg). |
| Gemini | |||
| Command Pilot | Overall mission success, safety of crew and spacecraft | James McDivitt | McDivitt was the first rookie Command Pilot. |
| Pilot | Edward White | White was the first American who made an EVA (Extra Vehicular Activity). | |
| Apollo | |||
| Commander | Overall mission success, safety of crew and spacecraft | Neil Armstrong, first man on the Moon Jim Lovell, commander of Apollo 13 |
|
| Command Module Pilot | Oversee command module functions during lunar excursion | Michael Collins, Richard Gordon | |
| Lunar Module Pilot | Responsible for descent and ascent of the Lunar Module | Buzz Aldrin, second man on the moon | Aldrin was the first "Doctor of Philosophy" (technically, "Doctor of Science (Sc.D.)") in Space |
| Docking Module Pilot | Deke Slayton, Mercury 7 astronaut | Position only used once during Apollo-Soyuz joint mission | |
| Skylab | |||
| Commander | Overall mission success, safety of crew and spacecraft | Pete Conrad, first Skylab commander | |
| Pilot | Paul J. Weitz | ||
| Science Pilot | Joseph P. Kerwin, first physician in space | ||
| Space Shuttle | |||
| Commander | Overall mission success, safety of crew and Shuttle, maneuvers Shuttle with assistance from Pilot. | John Young, commander of the first shuttle mission | All Shuttle commanders have prior spaceflight experience. Requires a degree in engineering, biological science, physical science, or mathematics. Must have at least 1000 hours flying experience on a jet aircraft. Must pass a NASA Class I space physical to be certified for flight. |
| Pilot | Assist the Commander in maneuvering the Shuttle. May be responsible for release and recovery of satellites. | Robert Crippen, flew the first shuttle mission as pilot | Same education and flight experience requirements as a Commander, but does not need prior spaceflight experience. |
| Payload Commander (PLC) | A Mission Specialist with additional responsibility for the management of the science or other major payload elements of the mission. | Story Musgrave, Michael P. Anderson | Payload Commanders are always NASA astronauts. |
| Mission Specialist (MS) | A NASA astronaut assigned to a Shuttle crew with mission-specific duties. | Jerry L. Ross and Franklin Chang-Diaz each flew seven times as Shuttle Mission Specialists. | Must pass a NASA Class II space physical to be certified for flight. |
| Flight Engineer | A Mission Specialist with additional responsibility of assisting the Pilot and Commander. The FE also keeps track of information from CAPCOM and calls out milestones. | Story Musgrave, Michael P. Anderson | The FE is always Mission Specialist 2 and sits in the S4 seat on the Shuttle flight deck. |
| International Mission Specialist | Same as Mission Specialist but may have payload-specific duties assigned by home agency. | Hans Schlegel | |
| Educator Mission Specialist | Same as Mission Specialist but with additional education-related duties. | Joseph M. Acaba, first Puerto Rican astronaut | Position created in 2004 as part of the Educator Astronaut Project. |
| Payload Specialist | Technical experts who accompany specific payloads such as a commercial or scientific satellites. |
|
Payload Specialists are non-NASA personnel. The term is also applied to representatives from partner nations such as Saudi Arabia and Mexico who were given the opportunity to fly on the Space Shuttle. |
| USAF Manned Spaceflight Engineer | Same as Payload Specialist, but are military personnel who accompany military payloads. | Gary Payton | Payton and William A. Pailes were the only Manned Spaceflight Engineers to fly before the program's termination in 1988. |
| Spaceflight Participant | People who travel aboard space missions coordinated by those agencies who are not part of the crew. |
Christa McAuliffe, Teacher in Space, Space Shuttle Challenger disaster |
This term serves to distinguish tourists and other special travelers from the career astronauts. |
Read more about this topic: Astronaut Ranks And Positions, NASA Ranks and Positions
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