Richard N. Richards
Richard Noel Richards is a retired United States Navy officer, test pilot, chemical engineer, and NASA astronaut who flew four shuttle missions.
- Born
- August 24, 1946
- Died
- N/A
- Birthplace
- Key West, Florida,United States
Flights
4
Spacewalks
0
EVA time
N/A
In space
33 days, 21 hours, 32 minutes
Bio
Richards graduated from the University of Missouri with a chemical engineering degree and later trained as a naval aviator and test pilot. His Navy background led to shuttle pilot and assignments.
He piloted STS-28 and STS-41, then commanded STS-50 and STS-64. His flights included a classified Department of Defense mission, Ulysses deployment, United States Microgravity Laboratory work, and LITE lidar science.
Richards' record shows the progression from pilot to commander across military, planetary-science, and microgravity missions.
STS-28 launched on August 8, 1989 aboard STS-28 flight stack, with Richards serving as Pilot. STS-41 launched on October 6, 1990 aboard STS-41 flight stack, with Richards serving as Pilot. Richards' additional completed flights were STS-50, STS-64. This mission context is drawn from the linked agency or institutional flight material and distinguishes flown service from training or backup assignments.