one of only three astronauts to fly both orbital and lunar Apollo Missions

Biographical Data

Born June 6, 1932, in San Antonio, Texas

Married Margaret Black
Children two

Education

High School Western High School, Washington, D.C.
Bachelor of Science United States Military Academy at West Point (5th in a class of 633, 1954)
Master of Science in Aeronautics and Astronautics Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1962)
Engineer in Aeronautics and Astronautics Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1962)
Honorary Doctorate of Astronautical Science University of Michigan (1971)

Military Career

Completed pilot training at Webb Air Force Base, Texas, in 1955.
Gunnery training at Laughlin Air Force Base, Texas, and Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.
32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, Soesterberg Air Base, Netherlands, April 1956-July 1960.

Air Force Experimental Test Pilots School, 1963
Aerospace Research Pilots School, 1964

Retired from Air Force with rank of Colonel in March 1975; had logged over 5,600 hours of flight time.

NASA Career

One of the third group of astronauts named in October 1963

Gemini VIII -- March 16, 1966 -- with command pilot Neil Armstrong -- flight scheduled to last three days but terminated early due to a malfunctioning thruster; did complete the first successful docking of two vehicles in space; total mission time 10 hours 41 minutes

Apollo IX -- March 3-13, 1969 -- command module pilot, with James McDivitt and Russell Schweickart -- the first test flight of all spacecraft and flight operations for the Apollo lunar mission

Scott stands in the open hatch of Apollo IX

Apollo XII -- backup spacecraft commander

Apollo XV -- July 26 - August 7, 1971 -- spacecraft commander, with Alfred M. Worden and James B. Irwin -- fourth manned lunar landing; first use of the Lunar Rover; first to visit and explore Hadley Rille and Apennine Mountains; on surface for 66 hours 54 minutes, a new record

logged a total of 546 hours 54 minutes in space, including 20 hours 46 minutes of EVA's; one of only three astronauts to fly both orbital and lunar Apollo Missions

Special Assistant for Mission Operations for the Apollo Soyuz Text Project
Civilian Director of the NASA Hugh L. Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California

retired from NASA in 1977

Post-NASA Career

formed several corporations concerned with project management consulting, development of opto-electronic sensor technology, commercial applications of space technology, etc.

President of the Baron Company, Ltd., a Bermuda company formed to pursue opportunities in the commercial space sector

1997, technical advisor for "Apollo 13"
1998, technical advisor for HBO series "From the Earth to the Moon"
2005, technical consultant on 3D IMAX film "Magnificent Desolation"

member of Brown University science teams on the Indian Chandrayaan-1 lunar orbit satellite

Organizations

fellow, American Astronautical Society
associate fellow, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
member, Society of Experimental Test Pilots

Awards and Honors

Air Force Association's David C. Schilling Trophy (1971)
Air Force Distinguished Flying Cross
Air Force Distinguished Service Medals (two)
NASA Distinguished Service Medal (two)
NASA Exceptional Service Medal
Presidential Medal of Freedom (1970)
Robert J. Collier Trophy (1971)
U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame (1993)

Books

Two Sides of the Moon (2004), parallel autobiography with cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, the first man to "walk in space," describing their insights and experiences during the Cold War Space Race

SOURCES
Astronaut Biographies www.jsc.nasa.gov
Astronaut Scholarship Fund astronautscholarship.org
New Mexico Space Museum www.nmspacemuseum.org

SEE ALSO
United States Military Academy at West Point
Neil Armstrong

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This page was last updated on 10/15/2017.