May 17 1976
From The Space Library
SPAR II, a Black Brant VC sounding rocket carrying materials processing experiments, was launched from the White Sands Missile Range in the second of a series of 15 planned during the next 5 yr in the SPAR (space-processing applications rocket) program managed by Marshall Space Flight Center. The 225.7-kg payload consisted of 10 experiments, 6 similar to those carried on SPAR I launched 11 Dec. 1975; the rocket reached an altitude of 188 km, providing about 5 min of near weightlessness during the coast phase, and the payload was recovered by parachute and delivered to the investigators for analysis. MSFC employees Carolyn Griner and Dr. Mary Helen Johnston were principal investigators for 2 experiments, both on dendrite remelting and macrosegregation. Other experimenters were Robert B. Pond (Johns Hopkins University), 2 experiments on solidification of lead antimony eutectic; Dr. James W. Patten (Battelle-Northwest Research Institute), 2 experiments on producing closed-cell metal foams; Dr. S.H. Gelles (Battelle Memorial Institute), agglomeration in immiscible liquids; Dr. H. Ahlborn (University of Hamburg), behavior of aluminum alloys under zero gravity; and Dr. Louis Raymond (Aerospace Corp.), 2 experiments in casting thoria dispersion-strengthened composites at zero gravity. (MSFC Release 76-83,76-94)
Payload responsibilities for the first 6 flights of the Space Shuttle had been allocated by NASA, according to Aviation Wk and Space Technology magazine. The first 6 orbital missions scheduled for 1979-1980 would be verifications of the overall Shuttle system; the first flight would carry no payload except a 45 000-kg data-analysis system, but the other 5 flight-test missions would carry scientifically meaningful payloads. NASA had assigned the second and fifth flight tests to its Office of Applications; the fourth and sixth, to the Office of Space Science,; and the third, to the Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology. The Office of Applications would be involved with space-processing hardware, and the Office of Space Science would oversee the use of existing research instruments; the OAST had been considering a space "workbench" on which various instruments could be deployed for 3- to 9-mo periods. The orbital flight-test missions would begin with a duration of only a few orbits, which should increase to about 7 days by the sixth flight mission; the first 4 flights would land at Dryden Flight Research Center, and the latter 2 at Kennedy Space Center. (Av Wk, 17 May 76, 21)
Astronaut Paul J. Weitz, Captain, USN, would retire from military service 1 June but would remain in his present job with the space agency as a civilian, NASA announced. Weitz, pilot on Skylab 2 (the first manned mission 25 May to 22 June 1973), was part of the crew who saved the mission by erecting a "parasol" shade to reduce overheating caused by damage to Skylab 1 during its launch, and by unjamming a solar-power wing to provide enough electrical power for their mission and 2 follow-on missions of 59 and 84 days respectively. Retiring after 22 yr Navy service, Weitz was currently working on payloads and flight-crew documentation for the Space Shuttle. (JSC Release 76-33)
International golfing great Arnold Palmer was scheduled to pilot a Learjet 36 "business aircraft" from Denver, Colo., for an assault on the speed-around-the-world record that had not been surpassed for 10 yr. A Learjet 24 had circled the earth in 1966 in 65 hr 38 min 39 sec elapsed time, at an average speed of better than 563 kph (50 hr 20 min actual flying time) including 17 intermediary stops, The National Aeronautic Association had sanctioned the new attempt, designating journalist Robert Serling as official onboard observer. Two additional pilots would accompany Palmer and Serling on their 2-day flight, scheduled to cover nearly 37 000 km, under the auspices of the Aviation Space Writers Association. Nine stops were planned for the new flight: Logan Airport at Boston; LeBourget at Paris; Mehrabad Airport at Tehran, Iran; Bandanaraike International Airport at Colombo, Sri Lanka; Kemayoran Airport, Jakarta, Indonesia; Manila International Airport; Wake Island; Honolulu International Airport; and Arapahoe County Airport, Denver. Besides NAA sponsorship, the flight was sanctioned by the American Revolution Bicentennial Association and the Aviation Historical Foundation. (NAA newsletter, May 1976, 1)
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