Jan 12 1986
From The Space Library
Columbia, flight STS 61-C, was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, after a Space Shuttle record of seven postponements. The crew completed their mission of launching RCA's $50 million satellite into orbit, for which NASA received $14.2 million from the corporation.
Ironically, after a 25-day delay in getting off the ground, the Space Shuttle was told to come down a day early. NASA engineers feared that bad weather might hamper the original landing date. Already behind schedule, NASA wanted extra time to prepare the Shuttle for the next flight in March and its mission of observing Halley’s Comet. The needed orbit for studying the comet would leave little room for delays of this launch. Most of Columbia's experiments were completed, but a camera device for photographing Halley’s Comet failed to work because a light intensifier had been inadvertently left on during the ship's seven launch delays. It was not until January 18, after a two-day delay because of poor weather, that Columbia landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Engineers had hoped to land the craft at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, from where it was scheduled to be launched on March 6. Therefore, an estimated five days were scheduled to be cut from its preparation time so that the critical date for observing Halley’s Comet could be met. (NY Times, Jan 13/86; Jan 14/86; Jan 15/86; Jan 24/86; USA Today, Jan 13/86; Jan 15/86; W Times, Jan 13/86; CSM, Jan 13/86; Jan 21/86; P Inq, Jan 13/86; B Sun, Jan 13/86; W Post, Jan 13/86; Jan 15/86; Jan 16/86; C Trib, Jan 13/86)
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