STS-61-B
Encyclopedia
STS-61-B was NASA
's 23rd Space Shuttle
mission, and its second using Space Shuttle Atlantis
. The shuttle was launched from Kennedy Space Center
, Florida
, on 26 November 1985. During STS-61-B, the shuttle crew deployed three communications satellite
s, and tested techniques of constructing structures in orbit
. Atlantis landed at Edwards Air Force Base
, California
, at 16:33 EST on 3 December 1985, after 6 days and 21 hours in orbit.
STS-61B was the quickest turnaround of a Shuttle orbiter from launch to launch in history – just 54 days between Atlantis’s launch on STS-51J and launch on STS-61B. The mission also carried the only person of Mexican nationality to fly in space to date.
on October 7, Atlantis returned to the Kennedy Space Center on October 12. The shuttle was moved directly into an Orbiter Processing Facility (OFP) where post-flight de-servicing and pre-flight processing took place simultaneously.
After only 26 days in the OPF, a record fast processing in the history of the Space Shuttle Program, the shuttle was rolled to the Vehicle Assembly Building on 7 November. Atlantis was mated with the External Tank and Solid Rocket Booster stack and was rolled out to launch pad 39A on 12 November 1985.
Three satellites were deployed during the mission: AUSSAT-2, Morelos-B, and SATCOM
Ku-2. The first two were the second in their series, the first examples having been deployed during STS-51-I
and STS-51-G
. Both were Hughes HS-376 satellites equipped with a PAM-D booster to reach geosynchronous transfer orbit. SATCOM Ku-2, meanwhile, was a version of the RCA 4000 series. RCA American Communications
owned and operated the satellite system of which SATCOM Ku-2 was a part. The satellite was deployed using a PAM-D2 booster, a larger version of the PAM-D. This was the first flight of this booster stage on a Space Shuttle.
All three satellites were successfully deployed, one at a time, and their booster stages fired automatically to lift them to geosynchronous transfer orbits. Their respective owners assumed charge, and later fired the onboard kickmotors at apogee, to circularize the orbits and align them with the equator.
.
Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off from Pad A of Launch Complex 39 at Kennedy Space Center at 19:29 pm EST on 26 November 1985. The launched marked the second night launch of the Space Shuttle Program, and the 9th and final flight of 1985.
A key element of the mission's objectives was EASE/ACCESS, an experiment in assembling large structures in space. ACCESS/EASE was a joint venture between the Langley Research Center
and the Marshall Space Flight Center
. ACCESS was a "high-rise" tower composed of many small struts and nodes. EASE was a geometric structure shaped like an inverted pyramid
, composed of a few large beams and nodes. Together, they demonstrated the feasibility of assembling large pre-formed structures in space. Astronauts Jerry Ross Sherwood Spring performed the two spacewalks of the mission which marked the 50th and 51st U.S. (and the 12th and the 13th for the Shuttle) EVAs. An IMAX
camera mounted in the cargo bay filmed the activities of the astronauts engaged in the EASE/ACCESS work, as well as other scenes of interest.
"This is probably not the preferred way of building a space station," Ross said later of EASE. The astronauts reported that the most difficult part of the spacewalks was torquing their own masses while holding the EASE beams. The ACCESS worked well, while EASE required too much free floating. The astronauts judged that performing six hour spacewalks every other day over a five or six-day period was feasible, and recommended glove changes to reduce hand fatigue. Ross said in the Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA) debrief that the crew had tried to have the Manned Maneuvering Unit
(MMU) manifested for use in the second spacewalk, because "for certain applications it would be very useful. In particular if you were building portions of a space station attached to the orbiter, then moving those portions farther than the manipulator arm could transport them." He added that the MMU could be used to attach cable runs and instruments in places out of reach of the shuttle's robotic arm (RMS).
During the mission, astronaut Rodolfo Neri Vela accomplished a series of experiments, primarily related to human physiology. He also photographed Mexico and Mexico City
as part of mission's earth observations. Astronaut Charles Walker again operated the Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System, the third flight of this larger and improved equipment, to produce commercial pharmaceutical products in microgravity. An experiment in Diffusive Mixing of Organic Solutions, or DMOS, was conducted successfully for the 3M Company. The object of this experiment was to grow single crystal
s that were larger and more pure than any that can be grown on Earth. One Getaway Special
canister stored in Atlantis' payload bay carried a Canadian student experiment, which involved the fabrication of mirrors in microgravity with higher performance than ones made on Earth.
All the experiments on this mission were successfully accomplished, and all equipment operated within established parameters. Atlantis landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base at 16:33 EST on 3 December 1985, after a mission lasting 6 days, 21 hours, and 5 minutes. Atlantis landed one orbit earlier than planned due to lighting concerns at the Edwards AFB. Rollout distance on landing was 10,759 feet lasting 78 seconds.
space station assembly.
. 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.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's 23rd Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
mission, and its second using Space Shuttle Atlantis
Space Shuttle Atlantis
The Space Shuttle Atlantis is a retired Space Shuttle orbiter in the Space Shuttle fleet belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States...
. The shuttle was launched from Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, on 26 November 1985. During STS-61-B, the shuttle crew deployed three communications satellite
Communications satellite
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite stationed in space for the purpose of telecommunications...
s, and tested techniques of constructing structures in orbit
Space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...
. Atlantis landed at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, at 16:33 EST on 3 December 1985, after 6 days and 21 hours in orbit.
STS-61B was the quickest turnaround of a Shuttle orbiter from launch to launch in history – just 54 days between Atlantis’s launch on STS-51J and launch on STS-61B. The mission also carried the only person of Mexican nationality to fly in space to date.
Crew
Mission parameters
- MassMassMass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
:- Orbiter liftoff: 118664 kilograms (261,609.3 lb)
- Orbiter landing: 93316 kilograms (205,726.6 lb)
- Payload: 21791 kilograms (48,040.9 lb)
- PerigeePerigeePerigee is the point at which an object makes its closest approach to the Earth.. Often the term is used in a broader sense to define the point in an orbit where the orbiting body is closest to the body it orbits. The opposite is the apogee, the farthest or highest point.The Greek prefix "peri"...
: 361 kilometres (224.3 mi) - Apogee: 370 kilometres (229.9 mi)
- InclinationInclinationInclination in general is the angle between a reference plane and another plane or axis of direction.-Orbits:The inclination is one of the six orbital parameters describing the shape and orientation of a celestial orbit...
: 28.5° - PeriodOrbital periodThe orbital period is the time taken for a given object to make one complete orbit about another object.When mentioned without further qualification in astronomy this refers to the sidereal period of an astronomical object, which is calculated with respect to the stars.There are several kinds of...
: 91.9 min
Shuttle processing
Following landing at the Edwards Air Force Base, completing STS-51-JSTS-51-J
STS-51-J was a NASA Space Shuttle mission. It was the first flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis and the 21st shuttle mission overall. It launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 3 October 1985, carrying a payload for the U.S...
on October 7, Atlantis returned to the Kennedy Space Center on October 12. The shuttle was moved directly into an Orbiter Processing Facility (OFP) where post-flight de-servicing and pre-flight processing took place simultaneously.
After only 26 days in the OPF, a record fast processing in the history of the Space Shuttle Program, the shuttle was rolled to the Vehicle Assembly Building on 7 November. Atlantis was mated with the External Tank and Solid Rocket Booster stack and was rolled out to launch pad 39A on 12 November 1985.
Payload
SATCOM
SATCOM or Satcom may refer to:* Short for Satellite Communications and used frequently in the context of VSAT * Communications satellites or comsats...
Ku-2. The first two were the second in their series, the first examples having been deployed during STS-51-I
STS-51-I
STS-51-I was the twentieth mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program and the sixth flight of Space Shuttle Discovery. During the mission, Discovery deployed three communications satellites into orbit...
and STS-51-G
STS-51-G
STS-51-G was the eighteenth flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program, and the fifth flight of Space Shuttle Discovery. The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 17 June 1985...
. Both were Hughes HS-376 satellites equipped with a PAM-D booster to reach geosynchronous transfer orbit. SATCOM Ku-2, meanwhile, was a version of the RCA 4000 series. RCA American Communications
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
owned and operated the satellite system of which SATCOM Ku-2 was a part. The satellite was deployed using a PAM-D2 booster, a larger version of the PAM-D. This was the first flight of this booster stage on a Space Shuttle.
All three satellites were successfully deployed, one at a time, and their booster stages fired automatically to lift them to geosynchronous transfer orbits. Their respective owners assumed charge, and later fired the onboard kickmotors at apogee, to circularize the orbits and align them with the equator.
Middeck payloads
- Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System (CFES)
- Diffusive Mixing of Organic Solutions (DMOS)
- Morelos Payload Specialist Experiments (MPSE) and Orbiter Experiments (OEX)
Other items
A checkered racing flag was carried onboard Atlantis during STS-61-B; the flag is now on display at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame MuseumIndianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum
The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum is an automotive museum on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, which houses the Auto Racing Hall of Fame. It is intrinsically linked to the Indianapolis 500, but it also includes exhibits reflecting other forms of...
.
Mission summary
A key element of the mission's objectives was EASE/ACCESS, an experiment in assembling large structures in space. ACCESS/EASE was a joint venture between the Langley Research Center
Langley Research Center
Langley Research Center is the oldest of NASA's field centers, located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It directly borders Poquoson, Virginia and Langley Air Force Base...
and the Marshall Space Flight Center
Marshall Space Flight Center
The George C. Marshall Space Flight Center is the U.S. government's civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center. The largest center of NASA, MSFC's first mission was developing the Saturn launch vehicles for the Apollo moon program...
. ACCESS was a "high-rise" tower composed of many small struts and nodes. EASE was a geometric structure shaped like an inverted pyramid
Pyramid
A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a single point. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three triangular surfaces...
, composed of a few large beams and nodes. Together, they demonstrated the feasibility of assembling large pre-formed structures in space. Astronauts Jerry Ross Sherwood Spring performed the two spacewalks of the mission which marked the 50th and 51st U.S. (and the 12th and the 13th for the Shuttle) EVAs. An IMAX
IMAX
IMAX is a motion picture film format and a set of proprietary cinema projection standards created by the Canadian company IMAX Corporation. IMAX has the capacity to record and display images of far greater size and resolution than conventional film systems...
camera mounted in the cargo bay filmed the activities of the astronauts engaged in the EASE/ACCESS work, as well as other scenes of interest.
"This is probably not the preferred way of building a space station," Ross said later of EASE. The astronauts reported that the most difficult part of the spacewalks was torquing their own masses while holding the EASE beams. The ACCESS worked well, while EASE required too much free floating. The astronauts judged that performing six hour spacewalks every other day over a five or six-day period was feasible, and recommended glove changes to reduce hand fatigue. Ross said in the Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA) debrief that the crew had tried to have the Manned Maneuvering Unit
Manned Maneuvering Unit
The Manned Maneuvering Unit is an astronaut propulsion unit which was used by NASA on three space shuttle missions in 1984. The MMU allowed the astronauts to perform untethered EVA spacewalks at a distance from the shuttle. The MMU was used in practice to retrieve a pair of faulty communications...
(MMU) manifested for use in the second spacewalk, because "for certain applications it would be very useful. In particular if you were building portions of a space station attached to the orbiter, then moving those portions farther than the manipulator arm could transport them." He added that the MMU could be used to attach cable runs and instruments in places out of reach of the shuttle's robotic arm (RMS).
During the mission, astronaut Rodolfo Neri Vela accomplished a series of experiments, primarily related to human physiology. He also photographed Mexico and Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
as part of mission's earth observations. Astronaut Charles Walker again operated the Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System, the third flight of this larger and improved equipment, to produce commercial pharmaceutical products in microgravity. An experiment in Diffusive Mixing of Organic Solutions, or DMOS, was conducted successfully for the 3M Company. The object of this experiment was to grow single crystal
Crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. The scientific study of crystals and crystal formation is known as crystallography...
s that were larger and more pure than any that can be grown on Earth. One Getaway Special
Getaway Special
Getaway Special was a NASA program that offered interested individuals, or groups, opportunities to fly small experiments aboard the Space Shuttle...
canister stored in Atlantis
All the experiments on this mission were successfully accomplished, and all equipment operated within established parameters. Atlantis landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base at 16:33 EST on 3 December 1985, after a mission lasting 6 days, 21 hours, and 5 minutes. Atlantis landed one orbit earlier than planned due to lighting concerns at the Edwards AFB. Rollout distance on landing was 10,759 feet lasting 78 seconds.
Spacewalks
Two spacewalks were conducted during STS-61-B mission to demonstrate assembly techniques which might be used inspace station assembly.
| EVA | Spacewalkers | Start (UTC Coordinated Universal Time Coordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose... ) |
End | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EVA 1 | Jerry Ross Jerry L. Ross Jerry Lynn Ross is a United States Air Force officer and a former NASA astronaut. He is a veteran of seven Space Shuttle missions, making him the record holder for most spaceflights .-Personal:Ross is married to the former Karen S. Pearson of Sheridan, Indiana. They have two children... Sherwood Spring |
29 November | 29 November | 5 hours 32 minutes |
| EVA 1 focused on human performance during assembling of an experimental erectable truss structure. Ross and Spring first assembled the 3.4-m (11-ft) Assembly Concept for Construction of Erectable Space Structures (ACCESS) assembly jig in Atlantis’ payload bay. Each cell was assembled in the jig, then pushed up so that the next cell could be assembled. The astronauts assembled the ACCESS truss in 55 minutes, (EVA time line allotted two hours for a single ACCESS assembly) so they assembled it and built it again. The Experimental Assembly of Structures through EVA (EASE) task involved putting together beams weighing 29 kg (64 lb) to make a 3.6-m (12-ft) three-sided pyramid assessed the capabilities of free-floating astronauts. EASE was scheduled to be assembled six times, but Ross and Spring managed eight assemblies. During the first four assemblies the astronauts used foot restraints. In his post flight debriefing, Spring noted that his fingers grew numb during the third EASE assembly and very tired during the fourth. At the end of the EVA Spring assembled and hand-deployed a small target satellite to be used after the EVA as a station-keeping target for Atlantis, which played the role of an automated orbital maneuvering vehicle in rendezvous software tests. | ||||
| EVA 2 | Jerry Ross Sherwood Spring |
1 December | 1 December | 6 hours 41 minutes |
| The purpose of EVA 2 was to assess the ability of astronauts to handle large structural elements and the ability of the Shuttle's robotic arm (RRM) to support future station assembly. Ross and Spring assembled nine bays of ACCESS, then placed parts for the tenth bay on the RMS. Ross stepped into the Manipulator Foot Restraint (MFR) and astronaut Mary Cleave positioned him within reach of the top of the ACCESS girder, where he assembled the tenth bay. The parts were not tethered. Ross performed a cable run assembly simulation by attaching a tether along the side of the tower while Cleave positioned him. Then Spring released the bottom of the tower so Ross could try to precisely handle the beam from the RMS. He replaced it in the assembly jig where it started, demonstrating astronaut ability to assemble a truss in one place and install it in another. Spring then replaced Ross on the MFR. He changed a beam on the tower to simulate structural repair, then pointed the truss at the Moon Moon The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more... to judge his handling ability. The astronauts took down ACCESS, and Spring assembled EASE from the RMS. Before finishing, he joined two beams to simulate handling a thermal control heat pipe. Ross unlatched the EASE pyramid so that Spring could maneuver it. Then he replaced Spring on the MFR to duplicate the EASE activities. |
||||
Wake-up calls
NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during the Gemini program, and first used music to wake up a flight crew during Apollo 15Apollo 15
Apollo 15 was the ninth manned mission in the American Apollo space program, the fourth to land on the Moon and the eighth successful manned mission. It was the first of what were termed "J missions", long duration stays on the Moon with a greater focus on science than had been possible on previous...
. 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.
| Flight Day | Song | Artist/Composer | Played for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 2 | "Air Force Hymn" | Brewster H. Shaw, Jr. | |
| Day 3 | "America the Beautiful America the Beautiful "America the Beautiful" is an American patriotic song. The lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and the music composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward.... " |
||
| Day 4 | "Marine Corps Hymn" | Bryan O’Connor | |
| Day 5 | "Notre Dame Victory March Notre Dame Victory March The "Notre Dame Victory March" is the fight song for the University of Notre Dame. It was written by two brothers who were Notre Dame graduates. The Rev. Michael J. Shea, a 1905 graduate, wrote the music, and his brother, John F. Shea, who earned degrees in 1906 and 1908, wrote the original lyrics... " |
Jerry Ross Jerry Ross Jerry Ross may refer to:* Jerry Ross , Gerald, American painter* Jerry Ross , Jerold, American lyricist and composer* Jerry L... |
|
| Day 6 | "Born in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A. is the seventh studio album by American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on June 4, 1984. A critical and commercial triumph, it found Springsteen marking a departure in his sound... " |
Bruce Springsteen Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band... |
See also
- SpaceflightSpaceflightSpaceflight is the act of travelling into or through outer space. Spaceflight can occur with spacecraft which may, or may not, have humans on board. Examples of human spaceflight include the Russian Soyuz program, the U.S. Space shuttle program, as well as the ongoing International Space Station...
- Space Shuttle AtlantisSpace Shuttle AtlantisThe Space Shuttle Atlantis is a retired Space Shuttle orbiter in the Space Shuttle fleet belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States...
- Space Shuttle programSpace Shuttle programNASA's Space Shuttle program, officially called Space Transportation System , was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011...
- List of space shuttle missions
- List of human spaceflights chronologically