Colin Michael Foale is a British-American astrophysicist and a former NASA astronaut.
15 Facts About Michael Foale
2.
Michael Foale is a veteran of six space missions, and is the only NASA astronaut to have flown extended missions aboard both Mir and the International Space Station.
3.
Michael Foale was the second Briton in space and the first to perform a space walk.
4.
Michael Foale was raised in Cambridge and educated at The King's School, Canterbury.
5.
In June 1983, Michael Foale joined NASA Johnson Space Center in the payload operations area of the Mission Operations Directorate.
6.
Michael Foale flew on Space Shuttle missions STS-45, STS-56 and STS-63.
7.
Michael Foale was then selected for an extended mission aboard the Russian Mir space station.
8.
In 1999, Michael Foale was a member of Space Shuttle mission STS-103, during which he conducted an eight-hour spacewalk to replace components of the Hubble Space Telescope.
9.
In 2003, Michael Foale was named commander of International Space Station Expedition 8 with cosmonaut Aleksandr Kaleri.
10.
Since leaving NASA, Michael Foale has become actively involved in the running of the International Space Schools Education Trust, especially their Mission Discovery and trips to Star City, Russia, giving unique experiences to students around the world.
11.
Michael Foale was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Lincolnshire and Humberside in July 2000 and an honorary Doctor of Science degree by the University of Kent in September 2000.
12.
Michael Foale was invested as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the diplomatic list of the New Year Honours in December 2004.
13.
Michael Foale is qualified to fly fixed-wing aeroplanes, gliders, as well as helicopters.
14.
Michael Foale has never owned a brand-new car, though he has always wanted one, and his hobbies include windsurfing, gliding, and cross-country skiing.
15.
Michael Foale was the driver of a car in 1980 in Yugoslavia, when a truck accidentally veered across the road and smashed into his car, killing his girlfriend and his brother.