Astronaut from Massachusetts heading to space this month

A local man and NASA astronaut is heading to the International Space Station in December.

Scott Tingle, 52, was born in Attleboro and raised in Randolph.

He was hired by NASA in 2009 and became an astronaut in 2011.

Later this month, Tingle will be part of a team that's heading to the International Space Station.

Their flight is scheduled for December 17 - and they're expected to stay in space until mid-April.

This is Tingle's first time heading to space - and he told Boston 25 News how he plans to stay busy during his time off while at ISS.

"Well, I have an iPod with a lot of songs on it. That will keep me busy. We have two guitars that are already up on board on the space station," Tingle said, and added he plans to play with a fellow astronaut on the trip.

The Massachusetts native went to Blue Hill Regional Tech in Canton, and earned a Mechanical Engineering degree from Southeastern Massachusetts University.

Cox Media Group