Jeff Ashby earned the master of science in aviation systems at the UT Space Institute in 1993. According to NASA, Ashby, a career Navy pilot, has traveled more than 11 million miles, flown 436 orbits around the Earth, and logged over 660 hours in space. In 1999, he piloted Space Shuttle Columbia; in 2001 he was the pilot aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour. In 2002, Ashby was the mission commander of Space Shuttle Atlantis.