John B. Charles Collection
Dublin Core
Title
John B. Charles Collection
Description
Originally from Rockdale, Texas, John Charles dreamt of being a NASA astronaut since John Glenn first orbited the Earth in 1962. By the age of 15, Charles had grown to 6 ft., 5 in., ending his NASA astronaut plan before it could start due to his height. He took out his hopes and frustrations through art, expressing his NASA space travel dreams from age 13 until age 23. Charles hid much of his artwork until his passing in 2022, only to be rediscovered when his papers were given to UHCL Archives.
Dr. John Charles became a NASA biophysicist in 1985, part of the team that developed a collapsible Lower Body Negative Pressure (LBNP) Device to restore astronauts’ bodies’ fluid balance. He supervised US astronauts during NASA’s first flights to the International Space Station. Charles was the Mission Scientist for his hero John Glenn’s return to spaceflight in 1998. He became the NASA Human Research Program’s Chief Scientist in the 2010s. In 2015-2016, Dr. John Charles oversaw the famous Twins Study, with twin brothers and astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly. We hope you enjoy seeing these unique archival items from of NASA greatest biophysicists, and a passion expert in NASA history.
Dr. John Charles became a NASA biophysicist in 1985, part of the team that developed a collapsible Lower Body Negative Pressure (LBNP) Device to restore astronauts’ bodies’ fluid balance. He supervised US astronauts during NASA’s first flights to the International Space Station. Charles was the Mission Scientist for his hero John Glenn’s return to spaceflight in 1998. He became the NASA Human Research Program’s Chief Scientist in the 2010s. In 2015-2016, Dr. John Charles oversaw the famous Twins Study, with twin brothers and astronauts Scott and Mark Kelly. We hope you enjoy seeing these unique archival items from of NASA greatest biophysicists, and a passion expert in NASA history.
Creator
John B. Charles
Source
John B. Charles Papers (unprocessed), Human Space Flight Collection, University of Houston-Clear Lake Archives and Special Collections, Houston, TX
Publisher
University of Houston-Clear Lake Archives and Special Collections
Date
Posted to UHCL Archives' Omeka site on February 18, 2026.
Date Available
TBD
Collection Items
John B. Charles Baby Photograph, 1955
Reprodiction of original black-and-white snapshot photograph of John B. Charles at 4 months old around July-August 1955, sitting in a 1950s baby stroller.
John Charles’ Rockdale, TX, Wolf Cub Scout Membership Card, January 1964
Reproduction of John Charles’ original membership card for the Wolf Cub Scout Pack No. 288 of Rockdale, Texas, dated January 9, 1964. This card is from Charles’ hometown Cub Scout group while he was 9 years old—just a year before his family moved to…
John Charles Boy Scout Camping Trip to Camp Vigor Photograph, July 1967
Reproduction of a color photograph of John B. Charles (right) and fellow Boy Scout John Baugh (left) standing in the entrance to their tent while the two were on a Boy Scouts’ camping outing at Camp Vigor near Parishville, NY, in July 1967. Charles,…
John Charles’ Massena, NY, Youth Hockey Team Photograph, ca. 1967-1970
Reproduction of an original photograph of a White Dairies-sponsored Massena, NY, youth hockey team, intended for middle school-aged players in the hockey hotbed of northern New York State’s hockey culture. John Charles played on the team, and was the…
John Charles’ Union Army Soldiers Marching Drawing, May 18, 1968
Reproduction of a colored pencil sketch made by John Charles, depicting two Union Army soldiers marching on a field, with one holding the American flag and the other playing a marching drum. One of Charles’ earliest-known, surviving drawings, he…
Astronaut Alan Shepard Jr. Thank-You Letter, June 23, 1969
Sometime between May-June 1969, a 14-year-old John Charles wrote to NASA astronaut Alan Shepard Jr. congratulating him on returning to full flight status as a NASA astronaut on May 7, 1969. Shepard wrote and signed back this letter to Charles on June…
John Charles’ Apollo 12 Command Module’s Display Panel Illustration, November 15, 1969
Reproduction of an original pencil sketch made by John Charles based on photographs and illustrations regarding the Apollo 12 spacecraft in a New York Times article on the front page and Page 22 for November 15, 1969. Frequently, Charles would read…
John Charles’ Undated Apollo Program’s Lunar Module Center Panel Sketch
Reproduction of an original pencil sketch made by John Charles based on an unidentified publication’s photographs or illustrations of the Apollo Program’s Lunar Module center panel. This undated sketch contains detailed labeling of the panel…
Peanuts Cartoonist Charles M. Schulz Signed Letter to John Charles, February 28, 1968
Sometime between December 1967 and February 1968, John B. Charles wrote to famous Peanuts comic strip cartoonist Charles M. Schulz asking his permission to practice drawing by drawing the Peanuts characters. Schulz took the time to write back and…
John Charles’ Peanuts Characters as NASA Astronauts Pencil Sketch, ca. 1968-1970
Reproduction of an original pencil sketch made by John Charles around 1968 to 1970 of cartoonist Charles Schulz’s famous comic strip Peanuts characters Charlie Brown and Linus, both wearing space suits. John Charles did not finish drawing Snoopy in a…
Collection Tree
- John B. Charles Collection