Backgrounder: Crew members of U.S. shuttle Atlantis' STS-129 mission

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- U.S. space shuttle Atlantis lifted off Monday from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a mission to deliver a stockpile of spare parts for the orbiting International Space Station (ISS). The following are brief introductions to the six astronauts aboard the shuttle.

Veteran astronaut Charles Hobaugh: a colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, will lead the crew of STS-129 mission. He served as pilot on STS-104 in 2001 and STS-118 in 2007. Hobaugh has overall responsibility for the safety and execution of the mission, orbiter systems operations, and flight operations, including landing. He will also fly Atlantis through its rendezvous and docking to the ISS.

Barry Wilmore: a captain in the U.S. Navy, will serve as pilot for Atlantis. This will be his first journey into space. Selected by NASA in 2000, he has served in various shuttle technical jobs and on the astronaut support team. He will be responsible for orbiter systems operations, will assist Hobaugh with rendezvous, and will fly the orbiter during undocking and the fly around.

Randy Bresnik: a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, will serve as a mission specialist for Atlantis. Selected by NASA in 2004 as a pilot, he was assigned as Astronaut Office support for ISS, Automated Transfer Vehicle, H-II Transfer Vehicle, and Constellation programs. This will be his first journey to space. Bresnik will participate in two of the three planned spacewalks.

Mike Foreman: a retired U.S. Navy captain, will serve as a mission specialist aboard Atlantis. He served as a mission specialist on STS-123 in 2008. Selected by NASA in 1998, he was assigned technical duties in the Astronaut Office Space Shuttle Branch and served as Deputy of the Space Shuttle Branch. Foreman will participate in two of the three planned spacewalks.

Astronaut Leland Melvin will serve as a mission specialist on Atlantis. He flew on STS-122 in 2008 as a mission specialist. He has served numerous organizations within NASA including the Education Department at NASA Headquarters. Melvin has traveled across the country engaging thousands of students and teachers in the excitement of space exploration, and inspiring them to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

This is the first spaceflight for Robert Satcher Jr. He was selected by NASA in 2004 and completed his initial training in 2006. Satcher worked as an orthopedic surgeon and did medical missions in Venezuela and Nigeria. He will participate in two of the three planned spacewalks.