Glover was selected as pilot of the crew for the Artemis II flight, planned to circle the Moon in 2026. If successful, he will be the first person of color to fly beyond Low Earth Orbit.[5][6]
Early life and education
Glover grew up in Pomona, California,[7] and graduated from Ontario High School in 1994, where he was a quarterback and running back for the Jaguars, and was a recipient of the 1994 Athlete of the Year Award.[8][9] Glover's interest in science and engineering was nurtured by his father, Victor Glover Sr. Glover's grandfather served in the Air Force during the Korean War period and faced many obstacles that made it difficult for him to pursue a career in aviation.[10]
Glover holds a certificate in space systems from the Naval Postgraduate School, as well as a certificate in legislative studies from Georgetown University.[9]
Glover is married to Dionna Odom Glover. They have four daughters.[9][15]
Military career
Glover was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy in 1999. He attended primary flight training at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, earning his naval aviator wings in 2001. He later trained on the F/A-18C Hornet with VMFAT-101 at MCAS Miramar, San Diego, California. In 2003, he was assigned to VFA-34, based out of Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. With VFA-34, he embarked on the final deployment of the USS John F. Kennedy in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In June 2006, Glover was selected to attend the United States Air Force Test Pilot School. Following graduation in June 2007, he was designated a test pilot and began his developmental test tour with VX-31, based out of Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California. In 2011, he was assigned to VFA-195 for his department head tour. Stationed at Naval Air Facility Atsugi, Japan, VFA-195 embarked on the USS George Washington in support of maritime operations in the Western Pacific Ocean.[3] At the time of his selection in 2013, Glover was assigned to the personal staff of John McCain as a legislative fellow in Washington, D.C.[16]
During his career, Glover has accumulated 3,000 flight hours in more than 40 aircraft and has completed over 400 carrier arrested landings and 24 combat missions.[9] Glover's callsign is "Ike", given to him by one of his first commanding officers, standing for "I know everything".[11]
NASA career
Glover and his crewmates inside the SpaceX Crew-1capsule during its approach to the ISS
Glover was introduced as one of the Astronaut Group 21 team in June 2013, completing training in 2015.[9]
"Mr. Glover's achievement is notable for NASA, which has worked to spotlight the "hidden figures" in its history, but has so far sent only 14 Black Americans to space out of a total of more than 300 NASA astronauts. He will not be the first Black astronaut aboard the station. But those who preceded him from NASA were members of Space Shuttle crews during the station’s construction and only made brief stays on the outpost."[7]
Victor Glover at Johnson Space Center (2022)
SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule Resilience launched on November 15, 2020, carrying Glover together with two other NASA astronauts (Michael S. Hopkins and Shannon Walker) as well as Soichi Noguchi of Japan. They arrived at the space station on November 17.[19] During his stay on the ISS, Glover was one of 18 astronauts selected for NASA's Artemis program on December 9, 2020.[20]
Glover's first spacewalk, which lasted for more than six hours on January 27, 2021, was a team effort with Hopkins as they worked to upgrade the Columbus module.[21] On his second spacewalk, also with Hopkins, Glover replaced a broken external camera.[18] On Glover's third spacewalk, he and Kate Rubins began work to upgrade the station power supply with hardware in preparation for installation of new solar arrays.[22]
On February 24, 2021, NASA recorded a video call from Vice President Kamala Harris to Glover, in the space station. According to NASA, "the conversation ranged from the legacy of human spaceflight to observing Earth from the vantage of the space station, Glover’s history-making stay aboard the orbiting laboratory, and preparing for missions from the Moon to Mars".[23]
Official crew portrait for Artemis II, from left: NASA Astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
^ abcWaller, Allyson (November 15, 2020). "Victor Glover will be the first Black crew member on the space station". The New York Times. Retrieved November 17, 2020. Originally from Pomona, Calif., Mr. Glover graduated with a bachelor's degree in general engineering from California Polytechnic State University in 1999. Over the course of 2007 to 2010, he earned three master's degrees: in flight test engineering, systems engineering and military operational art and science.
^ abGohd, Chelsea (February 1, 2021). "Spacewalking astronauts complete a space station battery upgrade years in the making". Space.com. Retrieved February 27, 2021. Once secure on the arm, and with help from Rubins inside the orbiting laboratory, Glover 'flew' over to the camera's site, with the blue hues of the Atlantic Ocean swirling hazily below. Glover successfully replaced the broken camera on the starboard truss, the first of three cameras to be installed during the spacewalk. To do this, Glover used a pistol grip tool (PGT), which astronauts use to remove and install bolts during spacewalks.
^Wall, Mike (November 17, 2020). "Victor Glover becomes 1st Black astronaut to arrive at space station for long-term stay". Space.Com. Retrieved November 17, 2020. Glover and three crewmates — fellow NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins and Shannon Walker and Japan's Soichi Noguchi — left Earth on Sunday evening (Nov. 15) aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule "Resilience." The launch kicked off Crew-1, SpaceX's first-ever contracted, fully operational astronaut mission to the space station for NASA.
^Strickland, Ashley (January 27, 2021). "NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins conduct spacewalk Wednesday". CNN. Retrieved February 27, 2021. It was the first spacewalk experience for Glover...The spacewalk officially began at 6:28 a.m. ET and ended at 1:24 p.m. ET. It lasted for about six hours and 56 minutes.
^Strickland, Ashley (February 28, 2021). "Astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover conducted a Sunday spacewalk". CNN. Retrieved February 28, 2021. Astronauts Kate Rubins and Victor Glover Jr. began their spacewalk outside of the International Space Station at 6:12 a.m. ET and ended at 1:16 p.m. on Sunday. The spacewalk assisted with a continuation of upgrades for the space station orbiting Earth.
^Etkind, Mark (February 27, 2021). "Vice President Kamala Harris Calls NASA Astronaut Victor Glover". NASA. Retrieved February 27, 2021. In celebration of Black History Month, NASA astronaut Victor Glover welcomed Vice President Kamala Harris to the International Space Station for a virtual chat.
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