Mike Massimino
Mike Massimino is a former NASA Astronaut, a New York Times bestselling author, a Columbia University professor, an advisor at The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, and a television personality.
A spacewalker on the final two Hubble Space Telescope servicing missions, Mike and his crews traveled faster (Mach 26) and higher (350 miles) than any other astronauts in the 21st century while increasing the discovery capabilities of arguably the greatest scientific instrument ever built by a factor of 100. During the final Hubble servicing mission, Mike was faced with both success and life-threatening challenges as he performed the most intricate repair ever attempted in space. Mike set a team record for cumulative spacewalking time on a single space shuttle mission, was the last person to work inside of the Hubble Space Telescope, and was the first person to tweet from space. He persisted through three rejections over 7 years on his way to becoming an astronaut, including overcoming a medical disqualification by training his eyes and brain to see better.
Mike has made numerous television appearances, including a recurring role as himself on the CBS comedy The Big Bang Theory. He was the host for the Science Channel Series The Planets and Beyond, a commentator on Discovery Channel's Space Launch Live, and was featured in National Geographic Television's One Strange Rock and in the Netflix series Worn Stories. Mike is a frequent guest on morning shows and late-night television including The Today Show, Good Morning America, and The Late Show with David Letterman, and a guest expert on network and cable news including NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, and CNBC.
Mike's first book, Spaceman: An Astronaut's Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe, has received rave reviews and is a New York Times best-seller. His second book, Spaceman: The True Story of a Young Boy's Journey to Becoming an Astronaut (for young readers) is a National Science Teachers Association 2021 Best STEM Book Winner.
Mike uses humor and his unique storytelling ability to inspire audiences to identify the passion in their work, to use teamwork and innovation to solve problems, to provide leadership in the face of adversity and crisis, and to never give up when pursuing a goal.
Mike Massimino is a former NASA Astronaut, a New York Times bestselling author, a Columbia University professor, an advisor at The Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, and a television personality.
A spacewalker on the final two Hubble Space Telescope servicing missions, Mike and his crews traveled faster (Mach 26) and higher (350 miles) than any other astronauts in the 21st century while increasing the discovery capabilities of arguably the greatest scientific instrument ever built by a factor of 100. During the final Hubble servicing mission, Mike was faced with both success and life-threatening challenges as he performed the most intricate repair ever attempted in space. Mike set a team record for cumulative spacewalking time on a single space shuttle mission, was the last person to work inside of the Hubble Space Telescope, and was the first person to tweet from space. He persisted through three rejections over 7 years on his way to becoming an astronaut, including overcoming a medical disqualification by training his eyes and brain to see better.
Mike has made numerous television appearances, including a recurring role as himself on the CBS comedy The Big Bang Theory. He was the host for the Science Channel Series The Planets and Beyond, a commentator on Discovery Channel's Space Launch Live, and was featured in National Geographic Television's One Strange Rock and in the Netflix series Worn Stories. Mike is a frequent guest on morning shows and late-night television including The Today Show, Good Morning America, and The Late Show with David Letterman, and a guest expert on network and cable news including NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC, and CNBC.
Mike's first book, Spaceman: An Astronaut's Unlikely Journey to Unlock the Secrets of the Universe, has received rave reviews and is a New York Times best-seller. His second book, Spaceman: The True Story of a Young Boy's Journey to Becoming an Astronaut (for young readers) is a National Science Teachers Association 2021 Best STEM Book Winner.
Mike uses humor and his unique storytelling ability to inspire audiences to identify the passion in their work, to use teamwork and innovation to solve problems, to provide leadership in the face of adversity and crisis, and to never give up when pursuing a goal.
Following Dreams, Setting Goals, and Never Giving Up
Teamwork and Leadership
Upon arriving at NASA, Mike discovered he was part of team that put the success of the team and the mission above individual accomplishments. The culture at NASA fostered strong relationships between astronauts and with NASA leadership. Teamwork and leadership was developed through the extraordinary experiences that Mike and his fellow astronauts shared during their training and spaceflights. Through these experiences strong friendships and working relationships were forged that enable...
Innovation and Problem Solving
Mike's second spaceflight was the final Space Shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope. On that mission Mike was tasked with the most complicated spacewalk ever attempted: the in-space repair of a delicate scientific instrument inside of the telescope. A major miscue during that spacewalk nearly led to failure. But the ground control team and the astronauts in space worked together to come up with an innovative solution that saved the day and the mission. Mike explains how...
Being Resilient and Adaptable
Mike's second space flight was one of the last of the Space Shuttle Program. It was time for NASA to retire the space shuttle and move on to the next phase in space exploration. That next phase included flying exclusively on the Russian Soyuz for the foreseeable future and working with commercial companies in the coming age of private space travel.
Many at NASA did not want to accept these changes. But the last few years have shown that those who accepted these changes have thrived,...
Recognizing the Purpose in your Work
No matter how much we enjoy our jobs we sometimes get caught up in the day-to-day activities and can forget the big picture. This can even happen to astronauts. Mike stresses the importance of trying to remember the reason why we work as hard as we do. In addition to supporting our families and enjoying the challenges of our jobs, we should always remember how we are making the world a better place through our work. For Mike, as an astronaut, it was servicing and repairing the Hubble Space...
An Astronaut's View on Planet Earth
The orbit of the Hubble Space Telescope is 350 miles above the Earth, 100 miles higher than the International Space Station. From that altitude, astronauts are able to see the curvature of our planet, and spacewalking astronauts are able to take in the magnificent views through their helmet visors with a 360- degree view of the Earth and the surrounding universe. Mike describes his observations and feelings while viewing our planet, including its fragility and the importance of taking care...
