About Gregory Jarvis
Gregory Bruce Jarvis (August 24, 1944 – January 28, 1986) was an American engineer and astronaut who died during the destruction of the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-51-L, where he was serving as payload specialist for Hughes Aircraft. == Education == Jarvis graduated from Mohawk Central High School (later renamed to Gregory B. Jarvis High School, which eventually became the Gregory B. Jarvis Middle School in his honor), in Mohawk, New York, in 1962. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from the State University of New York at Buffalo five years later, and a Master of Science degree in the same discipline from Northeastern University in 1969. Jarvis joined the United States Air Force the same year and served until 1973, when he was honorably discharged as a Captain. Thereafter, Jarvis worked for Hughes Aircraft. == Space Shuttle Challenger disaster == In June 1984, Jarvis was one of two Hughes Aircraft employees selected as candidates for the Space Shuttle program. He planned to conduct experiments regarding the effects of weightlessness on fluids. Jarvis was initially scheduled to make his shuttle flight in April 1985, but Jarvis was replaced on that flight by U.S. senator Jake Garn. Jarvis' flight was rescheduled for early January 1986, but he was again replaced – this time by U.S. representative Bill Nelson. Jarvis was Payload Specialist 2 on STS-51-L which was launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, at 11:38:00 EST on January 28, 1986.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.