 Dale A. Gardner poses in front of a camera with a "For Sale" sign in his hand, jokingly referring to the two broken satellites (Palapa B2 andWestar 6) the crew was sent out on EVA to pick up and return toEarth. | |
| Names | Space Transportation System-14 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Communications satellites deployment Communications satellites retrieval |
| Operator | NASA |
| COSPAR ID | 1984-113A |
| SATCATno. | 15382 |
| Mission duration | 7 days, 23 hours, 44 minutes, 56 seconds |
| Distance travelled | 5,293,786 km (3,289,406 mi) |
| Orbits completed | 127 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Space Shuttle Discovery |
| Launch mass | 119,442 kg (263,325 lb) |
| Landing mass | 94,123 kg (207,506 lb) |
| Payload mass | 17,375 kg (38,305 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 5 |
| Members | |
| EVAs | 2 |
| EVA duration |
|
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | November 8, 1984, 12:15:00 (1984-11-08UTC12:15Z) UTC (7:15 am EST) |
| Launch site | Kennedy,LC-39A |
| Contractor | Rockwell International |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | November 16, 1984, 11:59:56 (1984-11-16UTC11:59:57Z) UTC (6:59:56 am EST) |
| Landing site | Kennedy,SLF Runway 15 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit[1] |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Perigee altitude | 332 km (206 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 354 km (220 mi) |
| Inclination | 28.45° |
| Period | 90.40 minutes |
| Instruments | |
| Diffused Mixing of Organic Solutions (DMOS) | |
 STS-51-A mission patch  From left:Gardner,Walker,Fisher,Hauck andAllen | |
STS-51-A (formerly STS-19) was the 14th flight ofNASA'sSpace Shuttle program, and the second flight ofSpace ShuttleDiscovery. The mission launched fromKennedy Space Center on November 8, 1984, and landed just under eight days later on November 16, 1984.
STS-51-A marked the first time a shuttle deployed twocommunications satellites, and retrieved from orbit two other communications satellites. The CanadianAnik D2 andSyncom IV-1 satellites were both successfully deployed by the crew ofDiscovery.Palapa B2 andWestar 6, meanwhile, had been deployed during theSTS-41-B mission earlier in the year, but had been placed into improper orbits due to the malfunctioning of theirkick motors; they were both safely recovered and returned toEarth during STS-51-A.
| Position | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Frederick H. Hauck Second spaceflight | |
| Pilot | David M. Walker First spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 1 | Joseph P. Allen Second and last spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 2 Flight Engineer | Anna Lee Fisher Only spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 3 | Dale A. Gardner Second and last spaceflight | |
| Seat[2] | Launch | Landing |  Seats 1–4 are on the flight deck. Seats 5–7 are on the mid-deck. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hauck | ||
| 2 | Walker | ||
| 3 | Allen | Gardner | |
| 4 | Fisher | ||
| 5 | Gardner | Allen | |
| 6 | Unused | ||
| 7 | Unused | ||
| Attempt | Planned | Result | Turnaround | Reason | Decision point | Weather go (%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 Nov 1984, 8:23:00 am | Scrubbed | — | Weather | 7 Nov 1984, 7:51 am (T−00:20:00 hold) | High windshear in the KSC area.[3] | |
| 2 | 8 Nov 1984, 7:15:00 am | Success | 0 days 22 hours 52 minutes |
STS-51-A was launched fromFlorida's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) at 7:15:00 a.m.EST, on November 8, 1984, less than a month after theSTS-41-G flight. A launch attempt the day before was scrubbed at T-minus 20 minutes due to highshear winds in theupper atmosphere.
The five-person flight crew consisted of Frederick H. Hauck, commander, on his second flight; pilot David M. Walker; and three mission specialists – Anna Lee Fisher, Dale A. Gardner and Joseph P. Allen. Both Gardner and Allen were making their second shuttle flights. STS-51-A marked the first flight of the Space Shuttle commanded by an astronaut from the 1978 class rather than theApollo era.
The two communications satellites successfully deployed wereAnik D2 (on the second day of the mission) andSyncom IV-1, also known asLeasat 1 (on the third day); both were Hughes-built satellites. The orbiter then began a series of maneuvers to meet up with the first of the two satellites to be recovered, Palapa B2. The orbits of both satellites had been lowered by ground commands from about 970 km (600 mi) to 340 km (210 mi) to facilitate recovery operations. On day five of the mission,Discovery rendezvoused with Palapa. Mission specialists Allen and Gardner performed an EVA, capturing the satellite with a device known as a "Stinger" (Apogee Capture Device (ACD)),[4] which was inserted into the satellite'sapogee motor nozzle by Allen. The satellite's rotation was slowed to 1RPM, and Gardner, operating from a position on the end of the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) (Canadarm), attempted unsuccessfully to grapple the satellite. Allen was able to manually maneuver the satellite into its cradle with Gardner's help, further aided by the Canadarm, which was operated by Fisher. The successful, improvised rescue effort took two hours.
The recovery of Westar 6 was not as difficult, and took place a day later. This time, Gardner, using the same muscle-power technique Allen had used for Palapa B2's rescue, easily captured the satellite. With Allen's help, he placed it in a cradle in the cargo bay. Following Westar 6's recovery, Gardner humorously held up a "For Sale" sign, as if trying to find someone to sell the malfunctioning satellites to, as a means to indicate the successful recovery and provide some comical relief for the troubled owners. The Westar satellite was, ironically enough, indeed later sold to Hong Kong–basedAsiaSat.
The STS-51-A mission also carried the Diffused Mixing of Organic Solutions (DMOS) experiment. It was the first of a series of comprehensive organic andpolymer science experiments sponsored by3M. This mid-deck experiment was successful, and the proprietary results of the chemical mixes were turned over to 3M. One other experiment, aradiation monitoring experiment, was also performed.
The satellite recoveries on STS-51-A were the lastuntethered spacewalks until 1994, and marked the last use of theManned Maneuvering Unit (MMU). In 1994, theSimplified Aid For EVA Rescue (SAFER) was tested onSTS-64. On all subsequent spacewalks conducted by both NASA and theSoviet/Russian space agencies, the astronauts were tethered to the craft by some means.
The second mission ofDiscovery ended at 6:59:56 a.m. EST on November 16, 1984, with a successful landing on Runway 15 at KSC. Footage of the landing was used in opening scene of the 1985IMAX movieThe Dream is Alive. The flight completed 127 orbits, and lasted 7 days, 23 hours, 44 minutes, and 56 seconds. It was the third shuttle landing at KSC, and the fifth and last shuttle mission of 1984.
STS-51-A Mission insignia depicts the Space ShuttleDiscovery en route to Earth orbit for NASA's STS-51-A mission and is reminiscent of a soaring eagle, shown in the insignia. The red and white trailing stripes, the blue background, and the presence of the Eagle, generate memories of America's 208 year-old history and traditions. The two satellites orbiting the Earth backgrounded amidst a celestial scene are a universal representation of the versatility of the Space Shuttle. The two satellites it is meant to retrieve are also included as a more specific reference to the mission's main objective and a highlight of what part of the Shuttle's versatile mission capabilities she would be covering this time. White lettering against the blue border lists the surnames of the five-member crew.
NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during theProject Gemini, and first used music to wake up a flight crew duringApollo 15. 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.[5]
| Flight Day | Song | Artist/Composer |
|---|---|---|
| Day 2 | "Marine Corps Hymn" | |
| Day 3 | "Theme fromFor a Few Dollars More" | Ennio Morricone |
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.Space ShuttleDiscovery (OV-103) | ||
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| Completed flights | .jpg) | |
| Status |
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| On display | ||
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