KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — The U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, located at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, will add two new plaques to its walls this year.
Veteran astronauts Roy Bridges and Senator Mark Kelly will be welcomed to the hall of fame next month.
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“This year’s class is another example of excellence from our space program,” said Curt Brown, board chairman of the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. “The Hall of Fame has inducted 105 individuals with this honor; this year’s nominees are perfect examples of the accomplished individuals who are inducted each year. Both Kelly and Bridges represent the committed spirit of exploration, bravery and teamwork that make our space program a continued success. We are proud and honored to have them join the ranks of the space pioneers recognized in the United States Astronaut Hall of Fame at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.”
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Retired U.S. Air Force Major General Roy D. Bridges, Jr. was selected as an astronaut in 1980. In July 1985, he piloted the space shuttle Challenger for the eight-day Spacelab 2 mission. Bridges went on to serve as Center Director of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center from 1997 to 2003. Between 2003 and 2005, he served as the Center Director of NASA’s Langley Research Center.
Mark Kelly (Captain, USN, ret.) has served as a U.S. Navy combat pilot, a NASA astronaut, and is now serving as a U.S. Senator for Arizona. In 1996, he was selected as an astronaut in the same NASA class as his identical twin brother, Scott. Kelly’s first of four trips into space were as pilot of STS-108 in December 2001, during which he helped deliver equipment, supplies and additional crew members to the ISS. He retired from NASA in 2011 after commanding the space shuttle Endeavour on its final flight. Now as U.S. Senator for Arizona, he serves as chair of the Airland subcommittee on Senate Armed Services, which oversees the Army and Air Force planning, operations and programs. Mark Kelly will be the second sitting senator to be inducted, following John Glenn’s placement in 1990.
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Mark’s twin brother, Scott, was inducted into the Hall of Fame with the class of 2020.
An official ceremony and gala will take place at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex on May 6.
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