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Peggy Whitson Facts & Worksheets

Peggy Whitson is an American retired NASA astronaut and biochemistry researcher. She was the NASA Chief Astronaut from 2009 until 2012.

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Peggy Whitson is an American retired NASA astronaut and biochemistry researcher. She was the NASA Chief Astronaut from 2009 until 2012.

See the fact file below for more information on the Peggy Whitson or alternatively, you can download our 23-page Peggy Whitson worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

EARLY LIFE

  • Peggy Annette Whitson was born on February 9, 1960, in Beaconsfield, Iowa.
  • Her parents were farmers and owned a farm outside of the town where Peggy and Kathy, her sister, grew up.
  • After witnessing on the television the first moon landing in 1969, the young Peggy decided she wanted to be an astronaut.
  • In 1978, Peggy graduated from Mount Ayr Community High School.
  • Whitson received her degree in chemistry and biology from Iowa Wesleyan College in 1981. And later on, in 1986, Rice University awarded Peggy her doctorate in biochemistry.
  • She stayed at Rice University until October 1986 as a Robert A Welch Post-doctoral Fellow.

CAREER

  • After her fellowship at Rice, she worked as a National Research Council Resident Research Associate at Johnson Space Center.
  • Peggy was also part of the Krug International and was its Supervisor for the Biochemistry Research Group from April 1988 until September 1989.
  • The University of Texas Medical Branch invited Whitson to be an adjunct assistant professor for their Department of Human and Biological Chemistry and Genetics and Department of Internal Medicine.
  • Peggy also served as a project scientist for the Shuttle-Mir Program from 1992 to 1995.
  • Whitson also worked at the Medical Sciences division of Johnson Space Center as a deputy division chief until 1996 when she was selected as an astronaut candidate.
  • In the same year, Peggy started training as an astronaut. She then worked in different technical positions at NASA’s Operations Planning branch of the Astronaut Office.
  • In 1997, she became an adjunct professor at Rice University’s Maybee Laboratory for Biochemical and Genetic Engineering.
  • On June 5, 2002, Whitson flew into space as a flight engineer aboard the Endeavor space shuttle.
  • While in the International Space Station (ISS), Peggy did more than 20 experiments in human life sciences and microgravity. She also installed and operated hardware systems and commercial payloads on the space station.
  • Whitson was elected as the NASA ISS science officer, the first to be. She also conducted spacewalks to deploy a science payload and to install a service module shielding.
  • Peggy landed back on Earth on December 7, after staying on the ISS for about 185 days.
  • She went back into space on October 10, 2007. She flew with Malaysian Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor and Russian Yury Malenchenko aboard Soyuz TMA-11.
  • Whitson was the commander of the Expedition 16 mission crew, making her the first ISS female commander.
  • Peggy directed and supervised a substantial expansion of the working and living space on the space shuttle on this mission. The development included the installation of components manufactured by Canadian, European, and Japanese space agencies.
  • Expedition 16 lasted for six months, and during this time, Whitson conducted five spacewalks, doing assembly and maintenance tasks.
  • The Soyuz TMA-11 crew had a dangerous and difficult journey back to Earth, but was able to land on April 19, 2008.
  • Whitson was the chief of the Astronaut Office from 2009 until 2012. Her tasks involved overseeing all of NASA’s astronaut activities, including the selection and training of crews.
  • Peggy was the first female and non-pilot to hold the said position. She resigned in 2012 when she returned to active flight status.
  • On November 17, 2016, she boarded the Soyuz MS-03 for her third flight to the ISS.
  • She became the commander of Expedition 51 on April 10, 2017, through the end of the mission on June 2.
  • Whitson made four spacewalks during Expedition 51, maintaining or replacing station components.
  • Russia launched Soyuz MS-04, and as a cost-cutting measure, decided to board only one cosmonaut. This left an empty seat and led to the extension of Peggy’s mission by three months.
  • On September 3, 2017, Whitson returned to Earth along with Fyodor Yurchikhin and Jack Fischer.
  • Peggy spent a total of 289 days in space, which was the longest single spaceflight by a female. Whitson was also the oldest female to go into space, aged 57.
  • She conducted a total of 10 spacewalks throughout her career. The combined duration of these spacewalks were female astronaut records. Peggy retired in 2018.

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

  • Below are some of the awards that Peggy Whitson received:
    • Robert A. Welch Postdoctoral Fellowship (1985–1986)
    • Robert A. Welch Predoctoral Fellowship (1982–1985)
    • Summa Cum Laude from Iowa Wesleyan College (1981)
    • President’s Honor Roll (1978–81)
    • Orange van Calhoun Scholarship (1980)
    • State of Iowa Scholar (1979)
    • Academic Excellence Award (1978)
    • “Women on the Move” Award (2010)
    • Medal “For Merit in Space Exploration” awarded in Russia on April 12, 2011, for her outstanding contribution to the advancement of international cooperation in manned space flight
    • Women in Space Science Award (2019)
    • Whitson was also featured in the 2018 Time 100 list of influential people
  • In 2018, she was also included in the International Air and Space Hall of Fame.

Peggy Whitson Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Peggy Whitson across 23 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Peggy Whitson worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Peggy Whitson who is an American retired NASA astronaut and biochemistry researcher. She was the NASA Chief Astronaut from 2009 until 2012.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Factual Peggy
  • NASA Given
  • Childhood Memories
  • Fill the Void
  • Expeditions
  • Suits in Space
  • More to Know
  • Name Description
  • Spatial Record
  • The Dark Side

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Link will appear as Peggy Whitson Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, October 20, 2020

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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