Lisa Nowak

Described as

American naval flight officer and NASA astronaut

Other names

Lisa Marie Nowak, Lisa Caputo

Born

May 10, 1963

Born in

Washington, D.C.

Citizen of

United States

Occupation

astronaut; engineer; test pilot; naval flight officer

Worked for

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Education

United States Naval Academy; Naval Postgraduate School; United States Naval Test Pilot School

Military branch

United States Navy

Military rank

commander

Wikipedias with a page

39

Wikidata item Q49264 (wikidata.org/wiki/Q49264), public domain (CC0). Copied November 14, 2026.

Lisa Marie Nowak (née Caputo; born May 10, 1963) is an American aeronautical engineer, former NASA astronaut, and retired United States Navy officer. Nowak served as naval flight officer and flight test engineer in the Navy, and was selected by NASA for NASA Astronaut Group 16 in 1996, qualifying as a mission specialist in robotics. She flew in space aboard Space Shuttle Discovery during the STS-121 mission in July 2006, when she was responsible for operating the robotic arms of the shuttle and the International Space Station. In 2007, Nowak was involved in a highly publicized incident of criminal misconduct for which she eventually pleaded guilty to felony burglary and misdemeanor battery charges, resulting in her demotion from captain to commander, termination by NASA, and forced retirement from the Navy.
Born in Washington, D.C., Nowak graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1985. She was assigned to VAQ-34 at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, California, where she flew the EA-7L Corsair and ERA-3B Skywarrior. She earned a Master of Science degree in aeronautical engineering and a degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. In 1993 she was selected to attend the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. After graduation, she remained at Patuxent River, flying in the F/A-18 Hornet and EA-6B Prowler. During her Navy career she logged over 1,500 hours in more than 30 aircraft and was awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal and the Navy Achievement Medal.
In February 2007, Nowak was arrested in Orlando, Florida, after she accosted and pepper-sprayed Colleen Shipman, a U.S. Air Force captain romantically involved with astronaut William Oefelein, who had been in a relationship with Nowak. She was released on bail and initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, which included attempted kidnapping, burglary with assault, and battery. Subsequently, her assignment as an astronaut was terminated by NASA. In 2009, Nowak agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to charges of felony burglary of a car and misdemeanor battery. She remained a Navy captain until the following year when a Naval Board of Inquiry voted unanimously to reduce her in rank to commander and to retire her from the Navy under other than honorable conditions after 25 years of service.

Born, in its opening lines

May 10, 1963

From the Wikipedia article “Lisa Nowak” (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_Nowak), by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Copied November 14, 2026; not changed.