Chris hadfield is going to the International Space Station in 2012 !

U.S. Navy Test Pilot of the Year (1991). He received an honorary Doctorate of Engineering from the Royal Military College (1996). Hadfield is a member of the Order of Ontario (1996). He also received an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Trent University (1999). Chris has also received Vanier Award (2001), Meritorious Service Cross (2001), NASA Exceptional Service Medal (2002) and the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal (2003).

Hadfield underwent basic flight training in Portage La Prairie, Manitoba for which he was named top pilot in 1980. In 1983, he took honors as the overall top graduate from Basic Jet Training in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan and in 1984-1985, he trained as a fighter pilot in Cold Lake, Alberta on CF-5s and CF-18s.

Space flights

STS-74

Chris Hadfield served as Mission Specialist 1 on STS-74 in November 1995. It was NASA's second space shuttle mission to rendezvous and dock with the Russian Space Station Mir. During the flight, the crew of Space Shuttle Atlantis attached a five-tonne docking module to Mir and transferred over 1,000 kg of food, water, and scientific supplies to the cosmonauts. Hadfield flew as the first Canadian to operate the Canadarm in orbit, and the only Canadian to ever board Mir.^[2]

STS-100

In April 2001 Hadfield served as Mission Specialist 1 on STS-100, International Space Station (ISS) assembly Flight 6A. The crew of Space Shuttle Endeavour delivered and installed Canadarm2, the new Canadian-built robotic arm, as well as the Italian-made resupply module Raffaello. During the 11-day flight, Hadfield performed two spacewalks, which made him the first Canadian to ever leave a spacecraft and float freely in space. In total, Hadfield spent 14 hours, 50 minutes outside, traveling 10 times around the world during his spacewalk.^[5]

Canadian astronaut launched into space command

US space shuttle Endeavour astronaut Canadian Chris Hadfield peers in a shuttle window, 22 April 2001, after successfully setting up the Canada Arm 2 on the Destiny module of the International Space Station during first spacewalk.

Chris Hadfield has been designated to lead the International Space Station in 2013

No Canadian has ever led a mission in space, so Chris Hadfield’s promotion to lead the International Space Station in 2013 is a plum without precedent.

As the most junior partner among the five space agencies building the space station, Canada is entitled to only one per cent of crew time on the station. With his elevation to the key post announced on Thursday, Mr. Hadfield is getting the most out of Canada’s latest allotment.

A former CF-18 fighter and test pilot, Mr. Hadfield, 51, is qualified to fly many aircraft. They include the Russian Soyuz capsule – the only means of emergency escape for the astronauts aboard the space station. It’s just one detail on the resumé of the astronaut, aviation systems scholar, ski racer and guitar player.

But he prefers to frame his promotion as part of a long legacy of national achievement, starting in 1962, when Canada became the third country to send a satellite into space, and continuing next year when the Canadarm2 puts the finishing touches on the space station.

“We’ve definitely been at the vanguard and building on our expertise. Based on what we’ve proven, we were trusted to build the space station. That didn’t come because we outbid somebody. It was because of our proven capability,” Mr. Hadfield said.

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A planform view of the ISS backdropped by the limb of the Earth. In view are the station's four large, gold-coloured solar array wings, two on either side of the station, mounted to a central truss structure. Further along the truss are six large, white radiators, three next to each pair of arrays. In between the solar arrays and radiators is a cluster of pressurised modules arranged in an elongated T shape, also attached to the truss. A set of blue solar arrays are mounted to the module at the aft end of the cluster.

The ISS serves as a research laboratory that has a microgravity environment in which crews conduct experiments in biology, human biology, physics, astronomy and meteorology.^[11]^[12]^[13] The station has a unique environment for the testing of the spacecraft systems that will be required for missions to the Moon and Mars.^[14]

Configuration

Station elements as of 18 May 2010 (2010 -05-18)^[update]

The ISS is operated by Expedition crews, with the station programme maintaining an uninterrupted human presence in space since the launch of Expedition 1 on 31 October 2000, a total of 9 years and 227 days. The programme is thus approaching the current record, set aboard Mir, of 3,644 days (8 days short of 10 years), with the ISS expected to take the record on 23 October 2010.^[15] As of 17 March 2010, the crew of Expedition 23 is aboard.^[16]

Space Shuttle Atlantis docked to Mir on STS-71, during the Shuttle-Mir Program

The station is maintained at an orbit between 278 km (173 mi) and 460 km (286 mi) altitude, and travels at an average speed of 27,724 km/h (17,227 mph), completing 15.7 orbits per day.^[21]