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ASTRONAUT

Michael J. Smith

1945 - 1986

Photo of Michael J. Smith

Icon of person Michael J. Smith

Michael John Smith (April 30, 1945 – January 28, 1986), (Capt USN) was an American engineer and astronaut. He served as the pilot of the Space Shuttle Challenger when it was destroyed during the STS-51-L mission, when it broke up 73 seconds into the flight, and at an altitude of 48,000 feet (14.6 km), killing all seven crew members. Smith's voice was the last one heard on the Challenger voice recorder.During his Naval career, Smith flew 28 different types of civilian and military aircraft and logged 4,867 hours of flying time. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Michael J. Smith has received more than 62,027 page views. His biography is available in 30 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 28 in 2019). Michael J. Smith is the 53rd most popular astronaut (down from 43rd in 2019), the 2,772nd most popular biography from United States (down from 2,300th in 2019) and the 28th most popular American Astronaut.

Memorability Metrics

  • 62k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 54.65

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 30

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 4.41

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.40

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Page views of Michael J. Smiths by language


Among ASTRONAUTS

Among astronauts, Michael J. Smith ranks 53 out of 524Before him are Ken Mattingly, Gordon Cooper, Wally Schirra, Thomas P. Stafford, Mirosław Hermaszewski, and Toktar Aubakirov. After him are Viktor Patsayev, Phạm Tuân, Jügderdemidiin Gürragchaa, Viktor Gorbatko, Richard F. Gordon Jr., and Sally Ride.

Most Popular Astronauts in Wikipedia

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1945, Michael J. Smith ranks 158Before him are Brenda Fricker, Daniel Davis, Hugh Fraser, Edoardo Reja, Jarno Saarinen, and Vladislav Ardzinba. After him are Lee Jong-wook, Barbara Carrera, Princess Michael of Kent, Vinko Puljić, Curtis Hanson, and Ilija Petković. Among people deceased in 1986, Michael J. Smith ranks 92Before him are Jacques Henri Lartigue, Jorge Alessandri, Hermann Gmeiner, Henri Toivonen, Mart Stam, and Ding Ling. After him are Elsa Lanchester, Princess Anne of Orléans, Vitaly Abalakov, Helen B. Taussig, Valentin Kataev, and Judith Resnik.

Others Born in 1945

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Others Deceased in 1986

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In United States

Among people born in United States, Michael J. Smith ranks 2,772 out of 18,182Before him are Sally Kellerman (1937), Joseph Stilwell (1883), Bobby Darin (1936), Thomas R. Marshall (1854), William Henry Pickering (1858), and Patrick Duffy (1949). After him are Harold Bloom (1930), Carl Andre (1935), Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (1981), Daniel Boone (1734), Suzanne Collins (1962), and James Remar (1953).

Among ASTRONAUTS In United States

Among astronauts born in United States, Michael J. Smith ranks 28Before him are Christa McAuliffe (1948), Fred Haise (1933), Ken Mattingly (1936), Gordon Cooper (1927), Wally Schirra (1923), and Thomas P. Stafford (1930). After him are Richard F. Gordon Jr. (1929), Sally Ride (1951), Judith Resnik (1949), Ronald Evans (1933), Dick Scobee (1939), and Charles Duke (1935).