PERSONAL DATA: Born February 11, 1960 in Waterbury, Connecticut. Married to the former Candace L. Stolfi of Waterbury, Connecticut. They have three children. He enjoys flying, baseball, basketball, swimming, wood working, spending time with his family. His parents, Ralph and Georgiana Mastracchio, reside in Waterbury, Connecticut. Her mother, Helen Cooke, resides in Cheshire, Connecticut.

EDUCATION: Graduated from Crosby High School, Waterbury, Connecticut, in 1978; received a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering/computer science from the University of Connecticut in 1982, a master of science of degree in electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1987, and a master of science degree in physical science from the University of Houston-Clear Lake in 1991.

ORGANIZATIONS: Member, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

EXPERIENCE: Rick Mastracchio worked for Hamilton Standard in Connecticut as an engineer in the system design group from 1982 until 1987. During that time, he participated in the development of high performance, strapped-down inertial measurement units and flight control computers.

NASA EXPERIENCE: In 1987, Mastracchio moved to Houston, Texas, to work for the Rockwell Shuttle Operations Company at the Johnson Space Center. In 1990, he joined NASA as an engineer in the Flight Crew Operations Directorate. His duties included the development of space shuttle flight software requirements, the verification of space shuttle flight software in the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory, and the development of ascent and abort crew procedures for the Astronaut Office.

From 1993 until 1996, he worked as an ascent/entry Guidance and Procedures Officer (GPO) in Mission Control. An ascent/entry GPO has both pre-mission and real time Space Shuttle support responsibilities in the areas of onboard guidance, navigation, and targeting. During that time, he supported seventeen missions as a flight controller. In April 1996, Mastracchio was selected as an Astronaut Candidate and started training in August 1996. Having completed two years of training and evaluation, he is qualified for flight assignment as a mission specialist. Currently, Mastracchio is assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Computer Support Branch.