Jul 8 1994
From The Space Library
NASA announced the selection of two Space Grant Consortiums: Virginia and Colorado, and two universities: the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Cincinnati, to participate in the Student Launch Program. The program was intended to provide undergraduate students hands-on experience in flying space and Earth science experiments on suborbital sounding rockets and scientific balloons. (NASA Release 94-113)
NASA announced that in August 1994 scientists would have a chance to study how the Earth's global environment was changing when Space Shuttle Endeavour began its 10-day mission, carrying the Space Radar Laboratory on its second flight. The mission, which would feature various international scientific experiments, would be under the command of Michael A. Baker. (NASA Release 94-114)
Space Shuttle Columbia lifted off on schedule, and the seven astronauts, including the first Japanese woman in space, began their experiments. The embryonic newts were thriving, and the adult female newts had produced additional eggs. The astronauts also began performing tests to determine how their bodies were adapting to weightlessness. One effect of the absence of gravity was that astronauts tended to grow two or more inches in space because of an elongated spine; they would revert to normal height on Earth. Findings could help in treating back pain on Earth. Among the animals carried for experimental purposes were four pregnant newts. By July 17, the second newt had died for an undetermined reason. The scientists also levitated a pea-sized drop of gold inside an electromagnetic field to investigate ways to exploit the absence of gravity in manufacturing. The astronauts worked in two shifts around the clock in order to complete all but one of the planned 82 experiments. A blown fuse in the French-built electrophoresis unit kept the astronauts from conducting their final experiment before preparing to return to Earth. On July 20, the astronauts marked the 25th anniversary of the Moon landing. Because of heavy rainstorms, the projected landing on July 22 was postponed; because of the delay, the mission set a new Space Shuttle flight duration record. In the course of the flight, a number of the eggs hatched, and scores of eggs were laid by the various animals aboard. (B Sun, Jul 9/94; C Trib, Jul 9/94; NY Times, Jul 9/94; W Post, Jul 9/94; W Times, Jul 9/94; Reuters, Jul 9/94;B Sun, Jul 10/94; W Post, Jul 10/94; AP, Jul 10/94; UP, Jul 10/94; Reuters, Jul 10/94; USA Today, Jul 11/94; W Times, Jul 11/94; AP, Jul 11/94; Reuters, Jul 11/94; B Sun, Jul 12/94; W Post, Jul 12/94; USA Today, Jul 12/94; AP, Jul 12/94; Reuters, Jul 18/94; UP, Jul 18/94; Reuters, Jul 18/94; NY Times, Jul 19/94; USA Today, Jul 19/94; W Post, Jul 19/94; AP, Jul 19/94; UP, Jul 20/94; AP, Jul 20/94; AP, Jul 22/94; UP, Jul 22/94; Reuters, Jul 22/94)
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