 Columbia begins its final test flight from Launch Complex 39A of KSC | |
| Names | Space Transportation System-4 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Flight test |
| Operator | NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 1982-065A |
| SATCATno. | 13300 |
| Mission duration | 7 days, 1 hour, 9 minutes, 31 seconds |
| Distance travelled | 4,700,000 km (2,900,000 mi) |
| Orbits completed | 113 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Space Shuttle Columbia |
| Launch mass | 109,616 kg (241,662 lb) |
| Landing mass | 94,774 kg (208,941 lb) |
| Payload mass | 11,109 kg (24,491 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 2 |
| Members | |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 15:00, June 27, 1982 (UTC) (1982-06-27T15:00:00Z) (11:00 am EDT) |
| Launch site | Kennedy,LC-39A |
| Contractor | Rockwell International |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | July 4, 1982, 16:09:40 (1982-07-04UTC16:09:41Z) UTC (9:09:40 am PDT) |
| Landing site | Edwards, Runway 22 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Perigee altitude | 295 km (183 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 302 km (188 mi) |
| Inclination | 28.50° |
| Period | 90.30 minutes |
 STS-4 mission patch  Hartsfield andMattingly | |
STS-4 was the fourthNASASpace Shuttle mission, and also the fourth forSpace ShuttleColumbia. Crewed byKen Mattingly andHenry Hartsfield, the mission launched on June 27, 1982,[1] and landed a week later on July 4, 1982.[2] Due to parachute malfunctions, theSRBs were not recovered.
STS-4 was the final test flight for the Space Shuttle; it was thereafter officially declared to be operational.Columbia carried numerous scientific payloads during the mission, as well as military missile detection systems.[3]
| Position | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Ken Mattingly Second spaceflight | |
| Pilot | Henry Hartsfield First spaceflight | |
STS-4, being the last test flight of the Space Shuttle, was also the last to carry a crew of two astronauts. Commander Ken Mattingly had previously flown asCommand Module Pilot onApollo 16, and was also the original Command Module Pilot forApollo 13 before being replaced by his backup,Jack Swigert, after being exposed toGerman measles.[4] Hartsfield was a rookie astronaut who had transferred to NASA in 1969 after the cancellation of theAir Force'sManned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program. He had previously served as acapsule communicator (CAPCOM) onApollo 16, all threeSkylab missions, andSTS-1. Both men had graduated fromAuburn University, the only time an entire Space Shuttle flight crew were graduates of the same university.
From STS-4 onwards, NASA halted the appointment and training of complete backup flight crews. Instead, individual flight crew members were assigned backups who could take their place within the prime crew. The decision on whether to appoint a reserve crew member was made on a per-flight basis by flight management teams atJohnson Space Center. Consequently, the last NASA flight to have a full-time backup crew wasSTS-3.
| Seat[5] | Launch | Landing |  Seats 1–4 are on the flight deck. Seats 5–7 are on the mid-deck. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mattingly | ||
| 2 | Hartsfield | ||
| 3 | Unused | ||
| 4 | Unused | ||
| 5 | Unused | ||
| 6 | Unused | ||
| 7 | Unused | ||
STS-4 launched fromKennedy Space Center (KSC) on June 27, 1982, at 15:00:00 UTC, withKen Mattingly as commander andHenry Hartsfield as pilot.[1] This mission marked the first time the Space Shuttle launched precisely at its scheduled launch time. It was also the last research and development flight in the program, after which NASA considered the shuttle operational. After this flight,Columbia's ejection seats were deactivated, and shuttle crews did not wear pressure suits again untilSTS-26 in 1988.
STS-4's cargo consisted of the firstGetaway Special (GAS) payloads, including nine scientific experiments provided by students fromUtah State University,[6][7] and a classifiedU.S. Air Force payload.[8] A secretmission control center inSunnyvale, California participated in monitoring the flight. Mattingly, an active-duty naval officer, later described the classified payload – two sensors for detecting missile launches – as a "rinky-dink collection of minor stuff they wanted to fly". The payload failed to operate.[9] TheNational Reconnaissance Office intended to fly DAMON, a secret payload intended to replaceKH-9 HEXAGON, but it was canceled in December 1980.[10]
In the shuttle's mid-deck, a Continuous FlowElectrophoresis System and the Mono-disperse Latex Reactor flew for the second time. The crew conducted alightning survey with hand-held cameras, and performed medical experiments on themselves for two student projects. They also operated theRemote Manipulator System (Canadarm) with an instrument called the Induced Environment Contamination Monitor mounted on its end, designed to obtain information on gases or particles being released by the orbiter in flight.[3]
Columbia landed on July 4, 1982, at 16:09:31 UTC, on the 15,000 ft (4.6 km) concrete runway 22 atEdwards Air Force Base, the first orbital Shuttle landing on a concrete runway. This time the lead escortingT-38 "Chase 1" was piloted byGuy Gardner with crewmateJerry L. Ross.PresidentRonald Reagan andhis wife Nancy Reagan greeted the crew upon arrival. Following the landing, President Reagan gave a speech to the crowd gathered at Edwards, during which he declared the Space Shuttle operational.[2] He was followed by remarks from Mattingly and Hartsfield and a flyover of the new shuttleChallenger atop theShuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), headed for KSC.
The flight lasted 7 days, 1 hour, 9 minutes, and 31 seconds, and covered a total distance of 4,700,000 km (2,900,000 mi) in 112 complete orbits. The mission achieved all objectives except for the Air Force payload, but theSRBs were lost when their main parachutes failed, causing the empty casings to impact the ocean at high velocity and sink.[1] This andSTS-51-L were the only missions where the SRBs were not recovered.Columbia returned to KSC on July 15, 1982.
The path of the red, white, and blue streak on the mission patch forms the numeral "4", indicating the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence.
NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during theProject Gemini, and first used music to wake up a flight crew duringApollo 15.[11] Each track is specially chosen, often by the astronauts' families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.[11]
| Flight Day | Song | Artist/Composer |
|---|---|---|
| Day 2 | "Up, Up and Away" | The 5th Dimension |
| Day 3 | "Hold That Tiger" | Auburn University Band |
| Day 4 | Taped message forHank Hartsfield on his wedding anniversary | |
| Day 5 | "Theme from Chariots of Fire" | Vangelis |
| Day 6 | Delta Tau Delta fraternity song (Mattingly),Delta Chi fraternity song (Hartsfield) | |
| Day 7 | "This Is My Country" | Don Raye |
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.Space ShuttleColumbia (OV-102) | ||
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