Michael J. Bloomfield

Michael John "Bloomer" Bloomfield
NASA Astronaut
Nationality	American
Status	Retired
Born	March 16, 1959 (1959-03-16) (age 52) Flint, Michigan
Other occupation	Athlete
Rank	Colonel, USAF
Time in space	32d 11h 02m
Selection	1994 NASA Group
Missions	STS-86, STS-97, STS-110
Mission insignia

Michael John "Bloomer" Bloomfield (born 16 March 1959)^[1] is a former American astronaut and a veteran of three space shuttle missions.

Early life and education

Born in Flint and raised in Lake Fenton, Michigan,^[1] Bloomfield received his bachelor's degree in Engineering Mechanics from the United States Air Force Academy where he played Falcon football for coach Bill Parcells and was the team's captain. He became an F-15 fighter pilot with the rare combination of having graduated the Fighter Weapons Instructor Course (FWIC, pronounced 'Fwick') and then selected as a test pilot (assigned to the F-16 test squadron at Edwards AFB). He earned his master's degree from Old Dominion University before being selected as an astronaut candidate in 1994.

NASA career

He first flew as a pilot aboard STS-86 in 1997, where he docked with the space station Mir. Bloomfield also piloted STS-97 in 2000 and commanded STS-110 in 2002, both missions to the International Space Station.

Bloomfield has served as deputy director of flight crew operations at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston since 2006, before resigning from NASA in July 2007. Michael then became VP of the Constellation Program for ATK.

He also has taken on the nickname of Captain America, due to his Air Force and NASA previous work experience.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Michigan DNR page". Michigan DNR site. Michigan DNR. http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-54463_54466_20836-54952--,00.html. Retrieved 15 April 2011. 

External links

United States Air Force portal

• NASA Biography
• Spacefacts biography of Michael J. Bloomfield

Persondata
Name	Bloomfield, Michael J.
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	16 March 1959
Place of birth	Flint, Michigan
Date of death
Place of death