STS-129 Destination:
ISS component staging

Robert Lee “Bobby” Satcher Jr. is a medical practitioner who has worked in a number of medical fields throughout his career.

Dr. Satcher worked as an Orthopaedic Surgeon at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, specializing in Musculoskeletal Oncology, and as and adjunct professor in The Biomedical Engineering Department at Northeastern University School of Engineering. He was a member of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology in Advanced Medicine at Northwestern University. Dr. Satcher completed numerous medical missions for outreach care to underserved areas in Nicaragua, Venezuela, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and Gabon.

Dr. Satcher was selected by NASA in May 2004 to be an Astronaut Candidate. In February 2006, he completed Astronaut Candidate Training that included scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in shuttle and International Space Station systems, physiological training, T-38 flight training and water, and wilderness survival training. Dr. Satcher flew on STS-129 in November 2009 and has logged more than 259 hours in space, including 12 hours and 19 minutes in two EVAs.

Dr. Satcher left NASA in September 2011 and currently is on staff as a Surgical Oncologist at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.

– NASA