NAME: Timothy J. (TJ) Creamer (Lieutenant Colonel, USA)
NASA Astronaut (Mission Specialist Candidate)

PERSONAL DATA: Born November 15, 1959 in Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, but considers Upper Marlboro, Maryland, to be his hometown. Married to the former Margaret E. Hammer. They have two children. A vegetarian, his interests also include tennis, running, reading, SCUBA, and information technologies. His mother, Mary E. Creamer, resides in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. His father, Edmund J. Creamer, Jr., is deceased.

EDUCATION: Bishop McNamara High School, Forestville, Maryland, 1978. B.S., Chemistry, Loyola College, Baltimore, Maryland, 1982. M.S., Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1992.

ORGANIZATIONS: Member of Alpha Sigma Nu, Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Pi Sigma, Army Aviation Association of America, Association of the United States Army, and the British-American Project.

SPECIAL HONORS: Meritorious Service Medal (2nd Oak Leaf Cluster); Army Achievement Medal (1st Oak Leaf Cluster); National Defense Service Medal; Senior Army Aviator; Senior Parachutist; Distinguished Graduate of the U.S. Army Aviation School.

EXPERIENCE: Creamer graduated from Loyola College in May 1982, and was commissioned through the ROTC program as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He entered the U.S. Army Aviation School in December 1982, and was designated as an Army Aviator in August 1983, graduating as the Distinguished Graduate from his class. He was subsequently assigned to the 1st Armored Division as a section leader, platoon leader, flight operations officer, and as a personnel staff officer for the 501st Attack Helicopter Battalion. In 1987, he was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division as a commander of an air cavalry troop in the 17th Cavalry, and later as the personnel officer of the 82nd Aviation Brigade. Following this assignment, he completed a Master of Science degree in physics at MIT in 1992, and was subsequently assigned to the Department of Physics at the United States Military Academy as an Assistant Professor. Other military schools include Army Parachutist Course, Army Jumpmaster Course, the Combined Arms Services Staff School, and the Command and General Staff College. Most recently, he had been working as a Space Operations Officer, with the Army Space Command, stationed in Houston, Texas.

NASA EXPERIENCE: Creamer was assigned to NASA at the Johnson Space Center in July 1995 as a Space Shuttle vehicle integration test engineer. His duties primarily involved engineering liaison for launch and landing operations of the Space Shuttle. He was actively involved in the integrated tests of the systems for each Orbiter for its preparations for its next flight, and directly supported eight Shuttle missions as a vehicle integration test team lead. Additionally, he focused his efforts in coordinating the information technologies for the Astronaut Office to aid personnel in their electronic communications both on JSC as well as through their travels to other Centers.

Selected by NASA in June 1998, Creamer reported for Astronaut Candidate Training in August 1998. Having completed two years of intensive Space Shuttle and Space Station training, he has been assigned technical duties in the Space Station Branch of the Astronaut Office, where his primary focus involves the command and control computers on Space Station, as well as the office automation support computers, and the operational Local Area Network encompassing all international partners and modules.