Thursday August 4, 1955

Birth of Charles Gemar

Is an American former astronaut with NASA and a lieutenant colonel in the United States Army.

Gemar has flown on three Space Shuttle missions (STS-38, STS-48 and STS-62). Gemar has completed 385 orbits of the Earth and over 581 hours in space.

He has also served in different positions in NASA, including as a CAPCOM for Shuttle missions. Gemar was the first astronaut to be born in the state of South Dakota.

Is a retired American astronaut.

A former Marine aviator and lieutenant colonel, he worked as a test pilot before joining NASA in 1987. He flew three Space Shuttle missions before retiring in 1997.

69 years ago