|
PERSONAL DATA: Born November 1, 1953, at Cocoa
Beach, Florida, but considers Huntsville Alabama, to be her
hometown. She enjoys flying, ice skating, snow skiing, water
sports, and needlework.
EDUCATION: Graduated from Huntsville High
School in 1971; received bachelor of science degrees in applied
biology from Georgia Institute of Technology and in mechanical
engineering from Auburn University in 1975 and 1977,
respectively; received a master of science degree and a
doctorate in mechanical engineering from University of Alabama
in Huntsville, in 1983 and 1985, respectively.
ORGANIZATIONS: Fellow, American Society of
Mechanical Engineers (ASME). Member, Tau Beta Pi, Omicron Delta
Kappa, Pi Tau Sigma, and Sigma Gamma Tau honoraries, and Alpha
Xi Delta social sorority.
SPECIAL HONORS: Presidential Rank of
Meritorious Executive (2002), NASA Space Flight Awareness
Leadership Award (2005), NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal
(1998), NASA Exceptional Service Medal (1995,2002), NASA Space
Flight Medal (1992, 1994, 1997), NASA Fellowship for Full-Time
Study (1983), ASME National Old Guard Prize (1978), ASME Ralph
Coates Roe Medal (2001), Alabama Aviation Hall of Fame, and
Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame.
EXPERIENCE: After graduating from Auburn
University in 1977, Dr. Davis joined Texaco in Bellaire, Texas,
working as a petroleum engineer in tertiary oil recovery. She
left there in 1979 to work for NASA’s Marshall Space Flight
Center as an aerospace engineer. In 1986, she was named as team
leader in the Structural Analysis Division, and her team was
responsible for the structural analysis and verification of the
Hubble Space Telescope (HST), the HST maintenance mission, and
the Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility. In 1987, she was also
assigned to be the lead engineer for the redesign of the solid
rocket booster external tank attach ring. Dr. Davis did her
graduate research at the University of Alabama in Huntsville,
studying the long-term strength of pressure vessels due to the
viscoelastic characteristics of filament-wound composites. She
holds one patent, has authored several technical papers, and is
a Registered Professional Engineer.
Dr. Davis became an astronaut in June 1987. Her initial
technical assignment was in the Astronaut Office Mission
Development Branch, where she provided technical support for
Shuttle payloads. She then served as a CAPCOM in Mission Control
communicating with Shuttle crews for seven missions. After her
first space flight, Dr. Davis served as the Astronaut Office
representative for the Remote Manipulator System (RMS), with
responsibility for RMS operations, training, and payloads. After
her second space flight, she served as the Chairperson of the
NASA Education Working Group and as Chief for the Payloads
Branch, which provided Astronaut Office support for all Shuttle
and Space Station payloads. A veteran of three space flights,
Dr. Davis has logged over 673 hours in space. She flew as a
mission specialist on STS-47 in 1992 and STS-60 in 1994, and was
the payload commander on STS-85 in 1997.
After her flight on STS-85, Dr. Davis was assigned to NASA
Headquarters as the Director of the Human Exploration and
Development of Space (HEDS), Independent Assurance Office for
the Office of Safety and Mission Assurance. In July 1999, she
transferred to MSFC as Director of the Flight Projects
Directorate with responsibility for the International Space
Station (ISS) Payload Operations Center, ISS Nodes 2 and 3, ISS
Multi-purpose Logistics Modules, ISS Regenerative Environment
Control and Life Support System, and the Chandra X-Ray
Observatory Program. In August 2003, she was named Director of
Safety and Mission Assurance, with responsibility for the
safety, reliability, and quality activities of all MSFC projects
and personnel. In October 2005, Dr. Davis retired from NASA and
currently works for Jacobs Sverdrup Engineering, Science, and
Technical Services contract at MSFC.
SPACE FLIGHT EXPERIENCE: STS-47, Spacelab-J,
was the 50th Space Shuttle mission. Launched on September 12,
1992, this cooperative venture between the United States and
Japan, conducted 43 experiments in life sciences and materials
processing. During the eight-day mission, she was responsible
for operating Spacelab and its subsystems and performing a
variety of experiments. After completing 126 orbits of the
Earth, STS-47 Endeavour landed at Kennedy Space Center
on September 20, 1992.
STS-60 was the second flight of Spacehab (Space Habitation
Module) and the first flight of the Wake Shield Facility (WSF).
Launched on February 3, 1994, this flight was the first Space
Shuttle flight on which a Russian Cosmonaut was a crew member.
During the eight-day mission, her prime responsibility was to
maneuver the WSF on the RMS, to conduct thin film crystal growth
and she was also responsible for performing scientific
experiments in the Spacehab. The STS-60 Discovery
landed at Kennedy Space Center on February 11, 1994, after
completing 130 orbits of the Earth.
Dr. Davis was the payload commander for STS-85, which was
launched on Discovery on August 7, 1997. During this 12-day
mission, Dr. Davis deployed and retrieved the CRISTA-SPAS
payload, and operated the Japanese Manipulator Flight
Demonstration (MFD) robotic arm. The mission also included
several other scientific payloads for the conduct of research on
astronomy, Earth sciences, life sciences, and materials science.
The mission was accomplished in 189 Earth orbits, traveling 4.7
million miles. The STS-85 Discovery landed at Kennedy
Space Center on August 19, 1997.
|
