Lee Morin


Lee Miller Emile Morin is a retired United States Navy captain and NASA astronaut. He flew on STS-110 in 2002. He is the most formally educated astronaut with six academic degrees along with astronaut Story Musgrave.

Personal data

Born in Manchester, New Hampshire, Morin is married with two children and three grandchildren. An amateur machinist, he enjoys math and jogging.

Education

Captain Morin has been awarded the following US Navy Badges:
US Navy Astronaut Wings aboard STS-110
US Navy Flight Medical Office's Wings while at Naval Aerospace Medical Institute in Pensacola, Florida
US Navy Diving Officer's Badge and US Navy Submarine Medical Officer's Badge while serving aboard the USS Henry M. Jackson

Special honors

After graduating from the University of New Hampshire in 1974, Morin worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the laboratory now known as the Media Lab. Morin matriculated at New York University School of Medicine in 1974, received a Master of Science in Biochemistry in 1978, an M.D. in 1981, and a Ph.D. in Microbiology in 1982. He then completed two years of residency training in General Surgery at the Bronx Municipal Hospital Center and at Montefiore Medical Center in The Bronx, New York City.
In 1982, Morin received a Direct Commission in the U.S. Naval Reserve. In 1983, he entered active duty and attended the Naval Undersea Medical Institute in Groton, Connecticut. He was designated as an Undersea Medical Officer in 1983. He joined the crew of the submarine at the Electric Boat Company Shipyards in Groton. He remained aboard as Medical Officer for both Blue and Gold crews until 1985 when the ship arrived at its home port in Bangor, Washington. During his tour aboard Henry M. Jackson, Morin qualified as a Diving Medical Officer, and also received his "Dolphins" as a qualified Submarine Medical Officer.
Morin then entered Flight Surgeon training at the Naval Aerospace Medical Institute in Pensacola, Florida. He received his "Wings of Gold" as a Naval Flight Surgeon in 1986, and remained on the staff at NAMI as Flight Surgeon/Diving Medal Officer until 1989. While at NAMI, he received his Masters of Public Health degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He then left active duty and entered private practice in occupational medicine in Jacksonville, Florida. He remained in the Naval Reserve, and drilled with the United States Marine Corps' 3rd Force Reconnaissance Company in Mobile, Alabama.
In August 1990, he was recalled to active duty during Operation Desert Shield, when he was assigned to Branch Clinic, Naval Air Station Pensacola as a Flight Surgeon. Morin volunteered to reenter active duty, and was assigned to Administrative Support Unit, Bahrain, as Diving Medical Officer/Flight Surgeon during Operation Desert Storm and during the post-war build-down period.
In 1992, Morin rejoined the staff at NAMI, initially as Special Projects Officer. He was named the Director of Warfare Specialty Programs when NAMI became Naval Aerospace and Operational Medical Institute. In 1995, Morin entered the Residency in Aerospace Medicine at the Naval Aerospace and Operational Medical Institute. He completed the residency in 1996.

NASA

Selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in April 1996, Morin reported to the Johnson Space Center in August 1996. Having completed two years of training and evaluation, he was qualified for flight assignment as a mission specialist. Initially Morin was assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Computer Support Branch, followed by the Astronaut Office Advanced Vehicles Branch. He served a one-year tour with the U.S. State Department, where he was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health, Space, and Science. He was assigned to the Exploration Branch of the Astronaut Office. He led the rapid prototyping of the cockpit for the new Orion spacecraft, and served as deputy lead of the Orion Cockpit Working Group, specializing in avionics displays and ergonomics. Morin served on the EVA crew of STS-110 and has logged over 259 hours in space, including over 14 EVA hours.
As of 2021, Morin was a management astronaut, which means he was no longer eligible for flight assignment. NASA announced his retirement on December 18, 2025.

Space flight experience

Atlantis was the 13th Space Shuttle mission to visit the International Space Station. Mission milestones included: the delivery and installation of the SO Truss; the first time the station's robotic arm was used to maneuver spacewalkers around the station; and the first time that all of a shuttle crew's spacewalks were based from the station's Quest Airlock. Morin performed 2 EVAs totaling 14 hours and 9 minutes. The crew prepared the station for future spacewalks and spent a week in joint operations with the station's Expedition 4 crew. Mission duration was 10 days, 19 hours and 42 minutes.