William Oefelein
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
|
| Astronaut | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | March 29, 1965 Fort Belvoir, Virginia |
| Occupation1 | Pilot |
| Rank | Commander, USN |
| Space time | 12d 20h 51m |
| Selection | 1998 NASA Group |
| Mission(s) | STS-116 |
| Mission insignia |  |
| 1 previous or current | |
William Anthony "Bill" Oefelein (IPA pronunciation: 'oʊfɛlaɪn,) (born March 29, 1965 in Fort Belvoir, Virginia) is an American astronaut. His first mission was as pilot of STS-116.
Contents |
[edit] Early Life
Oefelein grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, where he flew float planes. He is a graduate of Oregon State University, where he became a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and an alumnus of the University of Tennessee Space Institute.
[edit] Career
In 1988, Oefelein received his commission as an ensign in the United States Navy from Naval Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Florida. He entered flight training in Texas in 1989 and was designated a Naval Aviator in September 1990. Oefelein was selected as an astronaut by NASA in June 1998, and reported to the Johnson Space Center the following August. After 2 years of training and evaluation, he qualified for an assignment as a space flight pilot. He was initially assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Advanced Vehicles Branch and Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) Branch. Oefelein completed his first mission as pilot on STS-116 and has logged over 308 hours in space.[1][2]
[edit] Family and personal
Oefelein was married for 15 years to Michaella Davis, whom he has known since high school. She is an employee of a NASA contractor. The marriage ended in 2005 and the couple's two children live with Davis. [3]
[edit] Relationships with coworkers
Former Astronaut Lisa Nowak met Oefelein in 1996 and they became friends about two years later while training together as astronauts at NASA.[4] On February 5, 2007 Nowak was arrested at the Orlando international airport following an altercation with U.S. Air Force Captain Colleen Shipman, who had been having a romantic relationship with Oefelein for about 3 months. At the time of her arrest, Nowak described her relationship with Oefelein as "more than a working relationship but less than a romantic relationship."[5] Oefelein later revealed more information about his relationship with Nowak, when he told detectives that he had a two-year romantic relationship with Nowak which he ended sometime after he started the relationship with Shipman. "I would [have] never predicted this,' Oefelein told a detective, "She had actually wished me a nice weekend, knowing Colleen was gonna spend it with me."[6][4]
[edit] Notes
- ^ NASA biography
- ^ 1998 Astronaut Candidates
- ^ Former mother-in-law says pair spent time together
- ^ a b Love notes shed light on astronaut assault case, Orlando Sentinel, March 05, 2007
- ^ Astronaut charged in bizarre love triangle.
- ^ Associated Press, Shuttle Pilot: Nowak Showed No Emotion
