Five Questions with James Newman

Article

“Five Questions with James Newman,” Interview by Tom Jones
Published in Quest Volume: 31 #3 (2024)

Abstract

James H. Newman, PhD, a physicist and veteran NASA Astronaut, flew on the Space Shuttle four times as a Mission Specialist, spending a bit more than 43 days in space. On STS-51, he and crewmate Carl Walz conducted a spacewalk to test tools and techniques for the upcoming Hubble Space Telescope repair mission. On STS-69, he operated the Shuttle robot arm to deploy the Wake Shield satellite and support EVA operations. On STS-88, the crew connected the first two modules to begin the International Space Station (ISS) assembly. Finally, his STS-109 mission in 2002 upgraded and repaired the Hubble Space Telescope, with Newman contributing two more spacewalks lasting nearly fifteen hours.
On STS-88 Endeavour in 1998, the mission focused on joining the US Unity module—Node 1—to the previously launched Russian Zarya module. After orbital rendezvous by Commander Bob Cabana and Pilot Rick Sturckow with the Zarya module (Functional Cargo Block, or FGB), Flight Engineer and Canadarm Operator Nancy Currie grappled Zarya with the robot arm and positioned it precisely on top of Unity. Bob then fired thrusters to mate Unity with Zarya, creating the nascent ISS. Lead spacewalker Jerry Ross and Jim Newman executed three EVAs to make electrical and data connections and outfit the ISS for future expansion. Veteran Russian Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev was added to the STS-88 crew about three months before launch, creating a truly international crew to begin building the International Space Station.
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Citation

Newman, James H. “Five Questions with James Newman.” Interview by Tom Jones. Quest: The History of Spaceflight Quarterly 31, no. 3 (2024): 3-8.