NAME:  Robert D. Cabana (Colonel, USMC)
       NASA Astronaut
 
BIRTHPLACE AND DATE:  Born January 23, 1949, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  His
parents, Mr. and Mrs. Theodore J. Cabana, reside in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
 
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:  Brown hair; brown eyes; 5 feet 9 inches; 157 pounds.
 
EDUCATION:  Graduated from Washburn High School, Minneapolis, Minnesota, in
1967; received a bachelor of science degree in Mathematics from the United
States Naval Academy in 1971.
 
MARITAL STATUS:  Married to the former Nancy Joan Shimer of Cortland, New
York.  Her mother, Mrs. George Anderson, resides in Cortland, New York.
 
CHILDREN:  Jeffrey David, August 19, 1972; Christopher Robert, April 22, 1974;
Sarah Anne, August 9, 1977.
 
RECREATIONAL INTERESTS:  He enjoys jogging, cycling, racquetball,
softball, sailing, and woodworking.
 
ORGANIZATIONS:  Member of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, the Naval
Academy Alumni Association, and Sigma Pi Sigma.
 
SPECIAL HONORS:  Recipient of the Daughters of the American Revolution Award
for the top Marine to complete Naval Flight training in 1976.  Distinguished
Graduate, U.S. Naval Test Pilot School.  Personal decorations include the
Defense Superior Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, NASA Exceptional
Service Medal and NASA Space Flight Medal.
 
EXPERIENCE:  After graduation from the Naval Academy, Cabana attended the Basic
School in Quantico, Virginia, and completed Naval Flight Officer training in
Pensacola, Florida, in 1972.  He served as an A-6 Bombardier/Navigator with
Marine Air Wings in Cherry Point, North Carolina, and Iwakuni, Japan.  He
returned to Pensacola in 1975 for pilot training and was designated a Naval
Aviator in September 1976.  He was then assigned to the 2nd Marine Aircraft
Wing in Cherry Point, North Carolina, where he flew A-6 Intruders.  He
graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School in 1981, and served at the
Naval Air Test Center in Patuxent River, Maryland, as the A-6 Program Manager,
X-29 Advanced Technology Demonstrator Project Officer, and as a test pilot for
flight systems and ordnance separation testing on A-6 and A-4 series aircraft.
Prior to his selection as an astronaut candidate he was serving as the
Assistant Operations Officer of Marine Aircraft Group Twelve in Iwakuni, Japan.
 
He has logged over 4,100 hours in 32 different kinds of aircraft, including the
AD-1 oblique wing research aircraft.
 
NASA EXPERIENCE:  Selected by NASA in June 1985, Cabana became an astronaut in
July 1986, qualified for assignment as a pilot on future Space Shuttle flight
crews.  After completing his training, he worked as the Astronaut Office Space
Shuttle flight software coordinator until November 1986.  At that time he was
assigned as the Deputy Chief of Aircraft Operations for the Johnson Space
Center where he served for 2-1/2 years.  He then served as the Lead Astronaut
in the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL) where the orbiter's
flight software is tested prior to flight.  Cabana has served as a capsule
communicator (CAPCOM) in Mission Control during Space shuttle missions, and has
also served as Chief of Astronaut Appearances.
 
Cabana served as the pilot on STS-41.  The five man crew launched aboard the
Space Shuttle Discovery on October 6 from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida,
and launched at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on October 10, 1990.
During 66 orbits of the earth the STS-41 crew successfully deployed the Ulysses
spacecraft, starting this interplanetary probe on its four year journey, via
Jupiter, to investigate the polar regions of the Sun; operated the Shuttle
Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet instrument (SSBUV) to map atmospheric ozone
levels; activated a controlled "fire in space" experiment (the Solid Surface
Combustion Experiment (SSCE)); and conducted numerous other middeck experiments
involving radiation measurements, polymer membrane production and microgravity
effects on plants.
 
With the completion of his first space mission, Cabana has logged a total of 98
hours 10 minutes 04 seconds in space.
 
CURRENT ASSIGNMENT:  Cabana will serve as the pilot on the crew of STS-53, a
Department of Defense mission scheduled for launch in the fall of 1992.
 
APRIL 1992