Kathryn C. Thornton

Kathryn Ryan Cordell Thornton (Ph.D.) (born August 17, 1952 in Montgomery, Alabama) is an American scientist and a former NASA astronaut with over 975 hours in space, including 21 hours of extravehicular activity. She is currently the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs in the University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science. Graduated from Sidney Lanier High School , Montgomery, Alabama, in 1970; received a bachelor of science d... more

Kathryn Ryan Cordell Thornton (Ph.D.) (born August 17, 1952 in Montgomery, Alabama) is an American scientist and a former NASA astronaut with over 975 hours in space, including 21 hours of extravehicular activity. She is currently the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs in the University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science. Graduated from Sidney Lanier High School , Montgomery, Alabama, in 1970; received a bachelor of science degree in physics from Auburn University in 1974, a master of science degree in physics from the University of Virginia in 1977, and a doctorate of philosophy in physics from the University of Virginia in 1979. Member of the American Physical Society, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Sigma Xi, Phi Kappa Phi, and Sigma Pi Sigma. After Dr. Thornton earned her Ph.D. at the University of Virginia in 1979, she was awarded a NATO Postdoctoral Fellowship to continue her research at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in... less