Capt. Robert Gibson flew on five space shuttle missions and served as commander aboard space shuttle Atlantis (shown during liftoff) in 1988. He is a member of the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame and the National Aviation Hall of Fame. (Photo: NASA)

The Eugene McDermott Library and the History of Aviation Archives at The University of Texas at Dallas will welcome retired NASA astronaut Capt. Robert Gibson for the Jalonick Lecture Series on Saturday, April 23, at 3 p.m.

His presentation, “An Aviation Life,” will be held in the Davidson-Gundy Alumni Center.

Gibson served in the U.S. Navy, where his career included working as a test pilot and flight instructor. He joined NASA in 1978 and became an astronaut in 1979. Gibson also served as chief of the Astronaut Office from 1992 to 1994 and was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2003 and the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2013.

“The McDermott Library as well as our Aviation Archives are honored to have the support from donors for this event. We look forward to hosting Robert ‘Hoot’ Gibson and hearing about his aviation adventures,” said Ellen Safley MS’89, PhD’96, dean of libraries at UT Dallas.

Tickets are free but limited. Please register to attend.

In 1992 George W. Jalonick IV and his wife, Mary McDonough Jalonick, established the George W. Jalonick III and Dorothy Cockrell Jalonick Memorial Distinguished Lecture Series in honor of George’s parents, whose names the lecture bears. The purpose of the lecture series is to enlighten and inform the community about aviation history by bringing in notable aviation historians and personalities.