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Joseph P. Allen, Ph.D. (born June 27, 1937) is a
NASA astronaut.

Allen was born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on June
27, 1937.  His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P.
Allen III, reside in Frankfort, Indiana. He
attended Mills School and is a graduate of
Crawfordsville High School in Indiana; received a
bachelor of arts degree in mathematics and physics
from DePauw University in 1959, and a master of
science degree and a doctor of philosophy degree
in physics from Yale University in 1961 and 1965,
respectively.

Allen is married to the former Bonnie Jo Darling
of Elkhart, Indiana. Her mother, Mrs. W. C.
Darling, resides in Elkhart. Their children are
David Christopher, born September 1968 and
Elizabeth Darling, born May 1972. His hobbies
include American handball|handball, squash
(sport)|squash, flying, sailing, skiing, music,
and photography.

Allen was a research associate in the Nuclear
Physics Laboratory at the University of Washington
prior to his selection as an astronaut.  He was a
staff physicist at the Nuclear Structure
Laboratory at Yale University in 1965 and 1966,
and during the period 1963 to 1967, served as a
guest research at Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Dr. Allen was selected as a scientist-astronaut by
NASA in August 1967.  He completed flight training
at Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma. He served as
mission scientist while a member of the astronaut
support crew for Apollo 15 and served as a staff
consultant on science and technology to the
President's Council on International Economic
Policy.

From August 1975 to 1978, Dr. Allen served as NASA
Assistant Administrator for Legislative Affairs in
Washington, D.C.  Returning to the Johnson Space
Center in 1978, as a senior scientist astronaut,
Dr. Allen was assigned to the Operations Mission
Development Group.  He served as a support crew
member for the first orbital flight test of the
Space Transportation System and was the
entry Capsule communicator|CAPCOM for this
mission.  In addition, in 1980 and 1981, he worked
as the technical assistant to the director of
flight operations.

Dr. Allen served as mission specialist on STS-5,
the first fully operational flight of the Shuttle
Transportation System, which launched from Kennedy
Space Center, Florida, on November 11, 1982.  He
was accompanied by Vance D. Brand (spacecraft
commander), Col. Robert F. Overmyer (pilot), and
Dr. William B. Lenoir (mission specialist). STS-5,
the first mission with four crewmembers, clearly
demonstrated the Space Shuttle as fully
operational by the successful first deployment of
two commercial communications satellites from the
Orbiter's payload bay.  The mission marked the
first use of the Payload Assist Module (PAM-D),
and its new ejection system.  Numerous flight
tests were performed throughout the mission to
document Shuttle performance during launch, boost,
orbit, atmospheric entry and landing phases. 
STS-5 was the last flight to carry the Development
Flight Instrumentation (DFI) package to support
flight testing.  A Getaway Special, three Student
Involvement Projects, and medical experiments were
included on the mission.  The STS-5 crew
successfully concluded the 5-day orbital flight of
Space Shuttle Columbia with the first entry and
landing through a cloud deck to a hard-surface
runway and demonstrated maximum braking.  STS-5
completed 81 orbits of the Earth in 122 hours
before landing on a concrete runway at Edwards Air
Force Base, California, on November 16, 1982. 

Dr. Allen was a mission specialist on STS 51-A,
which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida,
on November 8, 1984.  He was accompanied by
Captain Frederick (Rick) Hauck (spacecraft
commander), Captain David M. Walker
(astronaut)|David M. Walker (pilot), and fellow
mission specialists, Dr. Anna L. Fisher and
Commander Dale Gardner.  This was the second
flight of the Orbiter Discovery.  During the
mission the crew deployed two satellites, Canada's
Anik D-2 (Telesat H) and Hughes' LEASAT-1 (Syncom
IV-1), and operated the 3M Company's Diffusive
Mixing of Organic Solutions experiment.  In the
first space salvage attempt in history the crew
successfully retrieved for return to Earth the
Palapa B-2 and Westar VI communications
satellites.  STS 51-A completed 127 orbits of the
Earth in 192 hours before landing at Kennedy Space
Center, Florida, on November 16, 1984.  With the
completion of this flight Dr. Allen logged a total
of 314 hours in space. 

Allen is currently President of Space Industries,
Houston, Texas.
He has logged more than 3,000 hours flying time in
jet aircraft.

Allen is a member of several organizations,
including the American Physical Society, the
American Astronautical Society, the American
Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the
American Association for the Advancement of
Science, Phi Beta Kappa, Beta Theta Pi, Sigma Xi,
and Phi Eta Sigma.

Allen has been awarded many special honors: Winner
of a Fulbright Scholarship to Germany (1959-1960),
the Outstanding Flying Award, Class 69-06, Vance
Air Force Base (1969), two NASA
Group Achievement Awards (1971 and 1974) in
recognition of contributions to the Apollo 15
Lunar Traverse Planning Team and for subsequent
work on the Outlook for Space Study Team;
presented the 1972 Yale Science and Engineering
Association Award for Advancement of Basic and
Applied Science, the DePauw
University Distinguished Alumnus Award (1972), a
NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal
(1973), a NASA Exceptional Service Medal (1978),
and a NASA Superior Performance Award (1975 and
1981), an honorary doctor of science from DePauw
University (1983), and the Komarov Diploma from
the Federation Aeronautique Internationale.

Source
http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/persons/astronauts/a-t
o-d/AllenJP.txt (November 1989)

NASA