Who: Lt. Col. Mike Hodges, Joint Combat Identification Team, United States Air Force. Former Mission Controller at Johnson Space Center, where he logged more than 1,000 hours of real-time ISS support. What: Live Online Chat about working at Mission Control Center Houston When: Monday, Dec. 15, 2003 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. Central Standard Time

Biography: Hodges worked for five years as a certified flight controller at Johnson Space Center in Mission Control. He was the CATO, or Communications and Tracking Officer. This is a very important role in Mission Control because this person is responsible for the U.S. communication systems that provide uplink and downlink capability. In other words, without the CATO, we wouldn't be able to talk with the crew or see what's happening on the ISS. The CATO is also in charge of operating the cameras outside the ISS and can move and change what they are looking at with the touch of a screen. Hodges is a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force where he is currently on active duty. He is married and has two sons.

Outside the doors of Mission Control, JSC	Controllers watch Astronaut Michael Foale stow items on the ISS from Mission Control.
Lt. Col. Hodges was the Communications and Tracking Officer, or CATO, for Mission Control.	The current CATO points to the computer interface that operates the cameras outside the ISS.