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David R. Scott (born June 6, 1932) a former NASA
Astronaut, was one of the third group of
astronauts named by NASA in October 1963 and is
one of only List of lunar astronauts|twelve men
who have walked on the moon.

He was born in San Antonio, Texas and was educated
at T.M.I.: the Episcopal School of Texas,
Westpoint and Massachusetts Institute of
Technology

Scott was the first of the group three astronauts
to be selected to fly and was also the first to
command a mission of their own.

On March 16, 1966, he and command pilot Neil
Armstrong were launched into space on the Gemini 8
mission-- a flight originally scheduled to last
three days but terminated early due to a
malfunctioning thruster. The crew performed the
first successful docking of two vehicles in space
and demonstrated great piloting skill in
overcoming the thruster problem and bringing the
spacecraft to a safe landing.

Scott served as command module pilot for Apollo 9,
March 3-13, 1969. This was the third manned flight
in the Apollo series, the second to be launched by
a Saturn V, and the first to complete a
comprehensive earth-orbital qualification and
verification test of a "fully configured Apollo
spacecraft." The ten-day flight provided vital
information previously not available on the
operational performance, stability, and
reliability of lunar module propulsion and life
support systems. Highlight of this evaluation was
completion of a critical lunar-orbit rendezvous
simulation and subsequent docking, initiated by
James McDivitt and Russell Schweickart from within
the lunar module at a separation distance which
exceeded 100 miles (60 km) from the
command/service module piloted by Scott. The crew
also demonstrated and confirmed the operational
feasibility of crew transfer and extravehicular
activity techniques and equipment, with
Schweickart completing a 46-minute EVA outside the
lunar module. During this period, Dave Scott
completed a 1-hour stand-up EVA in the open
command module hatch photographing Schweickart's
activities and also retrieving thermal samples
from the command module exterior. Apollo 9
splashed down less than four nautical miles (7 km)
from the helicopter carrier USS Guadalcanal
(LPH-7).

In his next assignment, Scott was designated
backup spacecraft commander for Apollo 12.

He made his third space flight as spacecraft
commander of Apollo 15, July 26 - August 7, 1971.
His companions on the flight were Alfred
Worden|Alfred M. Worden (command module pilot) and
James B. Irwin (lunar module pilot). Apollo 15 was
the fourth manned lunar landing mission and the
first to visit and explore the moon's Hadley Rille
and Montes Apenninus|Apennine Mountains which are
located on the southeast edge of the Mare Imbrium
(Sea of Rains). The lunar module, "Falcon,"
remained on the lunar surface for 66 hours and 54
minutes (setting a new record for lunar surface
stay time) and Scott and Irwin logged 18 hours and
35 minutes each in extravehicular activities
conducted during three separate excursions onto
the lunar surface. Using "Rover-1" to transport
themselves and their equipment along portions of
Hadley Rille and the Apennine Mountains, Scott and
Irwin performed a selenological inspection and
survey of the area and collected 180 pounds (82
kg) of lunar surface materials. They deployed an
ALSEP package which involved the emplacement and
activation of surface experiments, and their lunar
surface activities were televised using a TV
camera which was operated remotely by ground
controllers stationed in the mission control
center located at Houston, Texas. Other Apollo 15
achievements include: largest payloads ever placed
into earth and lunar orbits; first scientific
instrument module bay flown and operated on an
Apollo spacecraft; longest distance traversed on
lunar surface; first use of a lunar surface
navigation device (mounted on Rover-1); first
subsatellite launched in lunar orbit; and first
extravehicular (EVA) from a command module during
transearth coast. The latter feat performed by
Worden during three excursions to "Endeavour's"
SIM-bay where he retrieved film cassettes from the
panoramic and mapping cameras and reported his
personal observations of the general condition of
equipment housed there. Apollo 15 concluded with a
Pacific Ocean splashdown and subsequent recovery
by the USS Okinawa (LPH-3).

He has a B.S. from the United States Military
Academy and an S.M. from Massachusetts Institute
of Technology|MIT. He has been awarded two NASA
Distinguished Service Medals, the NASA Exceptional
Service Medal, two Air Force Distinguished Service
Medals, the Air Force Distinguished Flying Cross,
the Air Force Association's David C. Schilling
Trophy and the Robert J. Collier Trophy.

==Stamp scandal==

After the return of Apollo 15 it was discovered
that the crew had taken 400 commemorative first
day covers to the moon of which a hundred were
then sold to a German stamp dealer. The profits of
the sale were used to establish trust funds for
Apollo 15 crew's children. Although their action
was not illegal and NASA had turned a blind eye to
similar activities on earlier flights the
administration decided to make an example of Scott
and his crew with none of them flying in space
again. 

==External links==
*http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/scott-dr.ht
ml David R. Scott: Official NASA biography
*http://www.royalsoc.ac.uk/page.asp?tip=1&id=3
102 David R. Scott: Challenges facing the human
exploration of Mars public lecture at the Royal
Society in London