Steven Hawley
Steven Alan Hawley is a former NASA astronaut who flew on five U.S. Space Shuttle flights. He is professor of physics and astronomy and director of engineering physics at the University of Kansas. Following an aborted attempt to launch ...
Judith Resnik
Judith Arlene Resnik was an American electrical engineer, software engineer, biomedical engineer, pilot and NASA astronaut, who died when the Space Shuttle Challenger was destroyed during the launch of mission STS-51-L. Recognised while still ...
Michael Coats
Michael Lloyd Coats is a former NASA astronaut (three spaceflights), raised in Riverside, California. From December 2005 to December 2012, he served as Director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
Igor Volk
Igor Petrovich Volk (Russian: Игорь Петрович Волк; Ukrainian: Ігор Петрович Волк; 12 April 1937 – 3 January 2017) was a cosmonaut and test pilot in the Soviet Union. Igor Volk was selected as a cosmonaut on 12 July 1977 and flew as Research ...
Terry Hart
Terry Jonathan "T.J." Hart is an American mechanical and electrical engineer, a retired United States Air Force lieutenant colonel and pilot, and former NASA astronaut. Hart was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in January ...
James van Hoften
James Dougal Adrianus "Ox" van Hoften, Ph.D. is an American civil and hydraulic engineer, retired U.S. Navy officer and aviator, and a former astronaut for NASA.
George Nelson
George Driver "Pinky" Nelson is an American physicist, astronomer, science educator, and a former NASA astronaut.
Oleg Atkov
Oleg Yur'yevich At'kov (Russian: Оле́г Ю́рьевич Атько́в; born 9 May 1949) is a Russian cardiologist and former Soviet cosmonaut. With a doctorate from the Russian Academy of Medical Science, Atkov was chosen to be the health specialist ...
Ronald McNair
Ronald Erwin McNair was an American physicist and NASA astronaut. He died during the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-51-L, in which he was serving as one of three mission specialists. He is survived by his wife, Cheryl, and ...
Ulf Merbold
Dr. Ulf Dietrich Merbold (born June 20, 1941) is the first West German citizen and second German native (after Sigmund Jähn) to have flown in space. He is also the first member of the European Space Agency Astronaut Corps to participate in a ...
What is the difference between a cosmonaut and an astronaut?
Cosmonaut and astronaut are synonyms, that is, theoretically we can use them interchangeably, but traditionally we call people launched into space by the Americans astronauts and by the Russians cosmonauts, regardless of what nationalities they were. That is, Americans, Canadians, Japanese, Italians, French and Germans flying with Americans are astronauts. In contrast, General Hermaszewski, the only (so far) Pole in Space, is called a cosmonaut because he flew as part of the Soviet space program.
