John Bennett Herrington (born September 14, 1958) is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronaut and a veteran of one
space shuttleThe Space Shuttle, part of the Space Transportation System , is a spacecraft operated by NASA for orbital human spaceflight missions. It began operations in the 1980s and is scheduled to be retired from service in 2010 after 134 launches...
mission. He is the first enrolled member of a
Native AmericanThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
tribe to fly in space.
Herrington was born in
Wetumka, OklahomaWetumka is a city in Hughes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,451 at the 2000 census. It is the headquarters for two federally recognized tribes, the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town and the Kialegee Tribal Town.-Geography:...
. He grew up in
Colorado Springs, ColoradoColorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is located just east of the geographic center of the state and south of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. At 6,035 feet the city sits over one mile above...
,
Riverton, WyomingRiverton is a city in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. It is both the largest city in the county and the largest within the historical boundaries of the Wind River Indian Reservation. The city's population was 9,310 at the 2000 census...
, and
Plano, TexasPlano is a northern suburb of Dallas, Texas. Located mostly within Collin County, the population was 222,030 at the 2000 census, making it the ninth-largest city in Texas. According to a 2008 census estimate, Plano grew to 267,480 residents, making it the seventieth most populous city in the...
where he graduated from
Plano Senior High SchoolPlano Senior High School is a public secondary school in Plano, Texas, USA, serving students in grades 11–12. The school is part of the Plano Independent School District, with admission based primarily on the locations of students' homes...
. He earned a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics from the
University of Colorado at Colorado SpringsThe University of Colorado at Colorado Springs is a campus of the University of Colorado System, the state university system of Colorado....
before receiving his commission in the
United States NavyThe United States Navy is the sea branch of the U.S. Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. As of 31 December 2008, the U.S. Navy had about 331,682 personnel on active duty and 124,000 in the Navy Reserve. It operates 283 ships in active service and more than...
in 1984. He served three deployments in the Pacific region before being assigned as a
test pilotA test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated.Test pilots may work for military organizations or private, companies...
.
John Bennett Herrington (born September 14, 1958) is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronaut and a veteran of one
space shuttleThe Space Shuttle, part of the Space Transportation System , is a spacecraft operated by NASA for orbital human spaceflight missions. It began operations in the 1980s and is scheduled to be retired from service in 2010 after 134 launches...
mission. He is the first enrolled member of a
Native AmericanThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas, their descendants, and many ethnic groups who identify with those peoples...
tribe to fly in space.
Herrington was born in
Wetumka, OklahomaWetumka is a city in Hughes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,451 at the 2000 census. It is the headquarters for two federally recognized tribes, the Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town and the Kialegee Tribal Town.-Geography:...
. He grew up in
Colorado Springs, ColoradoColorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is located just east of the geographic center of the state and south of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. At 6,035 feet the city sits over one mile above...
,
Riverton, WyomingRiverton is a city in Fremont County, Wyoming, United States. It is both the largest city in the county and the largest within the historical boundaries of the Wind River Indian Reservation. The city's population was 9,310 at the 2000 census...
, and
Plano, TexasPlano is a northern suburb of Dallas, Texas. Located mostly within Collin County, the population was 222,030 at the 2000 census, making it the ninth-largest city in Texas. According to a 2008 census estimate, Plano grew to 267,480 residents, making it the seventieth most populous city in the...
where he graduated from
Plano Senior High SchoolPlano Senior High School is a public secondary school in Plano, Texas, USA, serving students in grades 11–12. The school is part of the Plano Independent School District, with admission based primarily on the locations of students' homes...
. He earned a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics from the
University of Colorado at Colorado SpringsThe University of Colorado at Colorado Springs is a campus of the University of Colorado System, the state university system of Colorado....
before receiving his commission in the
United States NavyThe United States Navy is the sea branch of the U.S. Armed Forces. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. As of 31 December 2008, the U.S. Navy had about 331,682 personnel on active duty and 124,000 in the Navy Reserve. It operates 283 ships in active service and more than...
in 1984. He served three deployments in the Pacific region before being assigned as a
test pilotA test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated.Test pilots may work for military organizations or private, companies...
. Herrington was chosen by
NASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an agency of the United States government, responsible for the nation's public space program. NASA was established by the National Aeronautics and Space Act on July 29, 1958, replacing its predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for...
as an astronaut candidate in 1996 and flew his first space mission in 2002 as a mission specialist aboard
STS-113STS-113 was a Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour. During the 14-day mission in late 2002, Endeavour and its crew extended the ISS backbone with the P1 truss and exchanged the Expedition 5 and Expedition 6 crews aboard the station...
.
To honor his Native American heritage, Herrington, an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation, carried a
ChickasawThe Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States . They are of the Muskogean linguistic group....
Nation flag on his eleven-day trip. The flag had been presented to him by Chickasaw Nation Governor
Bill AnoatubbyBill Anoatubby is the present Governor of the Chickasaw Nation, a position he has held since 1987.-Early life:Anoatubby was raised in Tishomingo, Oklahoma, the tribe's first capital. In 1964, he graduated from Tishomingo High School, where he played football and was active in student government...
.
Rocketplane
In September 2005, Herrington resigned from NASA to become Vice President/Director of flight Operations for
Rocketplane Limited, Inc.Rocketplane Limited, Inc. is a defunct aerospace design and development company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with facilities in Guthrie, Oklahoma and Burns Flat, Oklahoma.- History :...
, where he replaced Mitchell Burnside Clapp. He will also serve as the pilot of the
XP SpaceplaneThe Rocketplane XP is a suborbital spaceplane under development by Rocketplane Limited, Inc.. The vehicle is powered by two jet engines and a rocket engine, enabling it to reach suborbital space...
. Herrington also provides part time support for the Center for Space Studies at the
University of Colorado at Colorado SpringsThe University of Colorado at Colorado Springs is a campus of the University of Colorado System, the state university system of Colorado....
.
In December, 2007, Herrington resigned from
Rocketplane Global, Inc.Rocketplane Limited, Inc. is a defunct aerospace design and development company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with facilities in Guthrie, Oklahoma and Burns Flat, Oklahoma.- History :...
and states that he plans to continue doing public speaking engagements as well as work with the
ChickasawThe Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the Southeastern United States . They are of the Muskogean linguistic group....
Nation.
Cross-Country Bike Ride
On August 13, 2008 Herrington embarked on a cross-country bicycle ride from Cape Flattery, WA to Cape Canaveral, FL dubbed Rocketrek.
His goal is to encourage students across the country to engage in math and science. Herrington will make several speaking stops at NASA Explorer schools and Indian reservations along his route, and he encourages anyone who's interested to track his ride on his website and puzzle over math questions related to the trip. Herrington is planning to finish at Cape Canaveral, FL in time to see his friend fly the next space shuttle mission.
The ride is sponsored by Pro Bike, Inc. in Oklahoma City and the Chickasaw Nation with additional support from Trek Bicycles and GEAR-UP South Dakota.
External links