Join the Department of Aerospace Engineering as we welcome Illinois alums, Mike and Julie Hopkins, back to campus. Colonel Hopkins (BS '91), NASA Astronaut, will give a public address on Friday, October 1 at 1:00pm in the Illini Union where he will discuss his latest mission as Commander of the Crew 1 Dragon Resilience and how his education helped lay the foundation for his out-of-this-world journey from student to astronaut.
You are invited to attend, but your confirmed RSVP is needed so that we may plan appropriately. If you are unable to attend this event, you may watch the live stream.
We hope to see you on campus for this exciting event!
Biography:
Michael S. Hopkins was selected by NASA as an astronaut in 2009. The Missouri native most recently served as Commander on the Crew-1 SpaceX Crew Dragon, named Resilience, which landed on May 2, 2021. It was the first postcertification mission of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft – the second crewed flight for that vehicle – and his second long duration mission aboard the International Space Station. He also served as Flight Engineer on the International Space Station for Expedition 64.
Hopkins participated in five spacewalks and spent a total of 168 days in space. The crew broke the American crewed spacecraft mission duration record set by the final skylab crew in 1974 as well as having the first night splashdown of a U.S. spacecraft since Apollo 8 in 1968.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Illinois and a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Stanford University. Hopkins currently supports International Space Station Operations at the Johnson Space Center.
