Mission Patch Designer Tim Gagnon
When you think of an astronaut's job description, art design may not be the first thing that comes to mind. However the astronaut crews on each mission are in charge of designing their team's mission patch. Every space launch crew including the expedition to the International Space Station (ISS) has a unique patch. Typically the designs feature the crew's names and visual elements that represent the mission.
Unlike other NASA missions, for trips to the ISS astronauts wear two patches as opposed to just one. This is because ISS crews overlap. Astronauts and cosmonauts travel to the ISS in groups of three or four and join a crew of three other astronauts already aboard. These astronauts form the Expedition, and are represented by a mission patch. About halfway through their time aboard the ISS, half the crew departs. The remainder are joined by another crew of astronauts forming a new Expedition and requiring a second patch.
How would you design your patch if you were headed to space? See the STEM in 30 team's mission patch, then try to make your own!
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