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Stephen K. Robinson is a NASA astronaut. He was
born October 26 1955, in Sacramento, California.
He enjoys Aviation|flying, Aviation
history|antique aircraft, swimming, canoeing,
hiking, music, art, and stereo photography. He
plays lead guitar in Max Q (Astronaut band)|Max Q,
a rock and roll band. His Canada|Canadian parents,
William, a land surveyor, and Joyce Robinson,
reside in Moraga, California.

==Education==
He graduated from Campolindo High School, Moraga,
California, in 1973 and obtained a Bachelor of
Science degree in
Mechanical_engineering|mechanical and aeronautical
engineering from the University of California,
Davis in 1978, a Master of Science degree in
mechanical engineering from Stanford University in
1985; and a doctorate in mechanical engineering,
with a minor in aeronautics and astronautics from
Stanford University in 1990.

==Organizations==
Robinson is a member of the American Institute of
Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Aerospace
Medical Association, and the Experimental Aircraft
Association.

==Special Honors==
He was awarded the NASA Ames Honor Award for
Scientists in 1989, the American Institute of
Aeronautics and Astronautics Outstanding Technical
Paper Award for Applied Aerodynamics in  1992, and
the NASA/Space Club G.M. Low Memorial Engineering
Fellowship in 1993.

==Experience==

Robinson started work for NASA in 1975 as a
student intern at NASA's Ames Research Center in
Mountain View, Santa Clara County,
California|Mountain View, California. After
graduation from the University of California at
Davis, he joined NASA Ames in 1979 as a research
scientist in the fields of fluid dynamics,
aerodynamics, experimental instrumentation, and
computational scientific visualization. While at
Ames, Robinson earned masters and doctorate
degrees in mechanical engineering at Stanford
University, with research emphasis in turbulence
physics, and additional research in human eye
dynamics. In 1990, Robinson was selected as Chief
of the Experimental Flow Physics Branch at NASA's
Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia,
where he led a group of 35 engineers and
scientists engaged in aerodynamics and fluid
physics research. 

In 1993, Robinson was awarded the NASA/Space Club
Low Memorial Engineering Fellowship, and was
assigned for 15 months to the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) as Visiting Engineer
in the Man Vehicle Laboratory (MVL). As an MVL
team-member, he conducted neurovestibular research
on astronauts on the Spacelab Life Sciences 2
Shuttle mission (STS-58). Other MIT research
included EVA dynamics for satellite capture and
space construction. While in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, Robinson was also a visiting
scientist at the U.S. Department of
Transportation's Volpe National Transportation
Systems Center, doing research on environmental
modeling for flight simulation, cockpit human
factors for GPS-guided instrument approach
procedures, and moving-map displays. 

Robinson returned to NASA Langley in September
1994, where he accepted a dual assignment as
research scientist in the Multidisciplinary design
optimization Branch, and as leader of the
Aerodynamics and Acoustics element of NASA's
General Aviation Technology program. 

Robinson has logged over 1400 hours in aircraft
ranging from antique taildraggers to NASA jets.

==Astronaut Experience==
Robinson began applying to become an astronaut in
1983, and was selected to join NASA's astronaut
corps in 1995.

Robinson has served on three Space Shuttle
missions: STS-85, STS-95 and STS-114. On August 3,
2005, as a Mission Specialist (and Flight
Engineer) on STS-114, Robinson became the first
human to perform an STS-114#In-flight_repair|
in-flight repair to the Shuttle's exterior.
Robinson was sent to remove two protruding gap
fillers on Space Shuttle Discovery| Discoverys
heat shield, after engineers determined they might
pose a danger upon re-entry. Robinson successfully
removed the loose material while the Discovery was
docked to the International Space Station.

Robinson performed another "first" on STS-114 when
he made the first podcasting| podcast from space
(http://www1.nasa.gov/returntoflight/crew/robinson
_podcast.html transcript & audio) on 7 August
2005.

==References==
*
http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/robinson.htm
l Official NASA Bio
*
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/space/preparingtravel/s
teve_robinson_profile.html STS-114 Steve Robinson
Crew Profile

==External Links==
*http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/afl/index.html
Pre-Recorded Q&A with Steve Robinson in NASA's
Astronaut Flight Lounge; - Select "Steve Robinson"
from the Astronauts tab
* http://daviswiki.org/Stephen_Robinson Stephen
Robinson on the Davis Wiki