12 Facts About William Shepherd

William McMichael "Bill" Shepherd was born on July 26,1949), (Capt, USN, Ret.

William Shepherd is a recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.

William Shepherd is married to Beth Stringham of Batavia, New York.

William Shepherd graduated from Arcadia High School in Phoenix, Arizona in 1967, and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland in 1971.

William Shepherd served with the Navy's Underwater Demolition Team ELEVEN, SEAL Teams ONE and TWO, and Special Boat Unit TWENTY.

William Shepherd obtained an Engineer's degree in Ocean Engineering and a Master of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering, both in 1978, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

William Shepherd was the first military non-aviator in astronaut training, following his unsuccessful application for NASA Astronaut Group 9 in 1980.

William Shepherd then served as a mission specialist on three Space Shuttle flights: mission STS-27 in 1988, mission STS-41 in 1990, which deployed the Ulysses probe, and mission STS-52 in 1992.

William Shepherd was the first member of NASA Astronaut Group 10 to fly a space mission.

STS-27: Atlantis William Shepherd served with his crewmates on a mission that lasted 105 hours and carried Department of Defense payloads.

William Shepherd was next assigned to the staff of Commander, Naval Special Warfare Command, to assist with the development of new capabilities and programs for the Navy's SEAL and Special Boat units.

William Shepherd retired from the US Navy in January 2002.