David Carl Hilmers
David Carl Hilmers is an American former Marine Corps colonel, engineer, NASA astronaut, physician, and global-health professor. He flew four shuttle missions, then left NASA and built a second career in medicine and international health.
- Born
- January 28, 1950
- Died
- N/A
- Birthplace
- Clinton, Iowa,United States
Flights
4
Spacewalks
0
EVA time
N/A
In space
20 days, 14 hours, 16 minutes
Bio
Hilmers graduated from Cornell College with degrees in mathematics and electrical engineering before entering the Marine Corps. He later earned master's degrees in electrical engineering and public administration while serving as a military officer and astronaut.
NASA selected Hilmers in 1980. He flew STS-51-J, the second Department of Defense shuttle mission; STS-26, the return-to-flight mission after Challenger; STS-36, another classified DoD mission; and STS-42, the International Microgravity Laboratory-1 flight.
After retiring from NASA and the Marine Corps, Hilmers earned a medical degree and worked in pediatrics, internal medicine, and global health. His career is one of the stronger examples of an astronaut building an entirely new public-service career after spaceflight.