STS-26
From The Space Library
 | |
| Organization | NASA-Office of Space Flight (United States) |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Human Crew |
| Launch date | September 29, 1988 |
| Launch vehicle | Space Shuttle |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral, United States |
| COSPAR ID | 1988-091A |
| Inclination | 28.5 degrees |
| Experiments | Here |
| Alternate Names | 19547 |
| Additional Information | Here |
| Data Collection | Here |
| Payload Mass Up | 21082 kg |
| Payload Mass Down | 4074.55 kg |
| Orbiter | Discovery |
| Lift Off Mass | 2,055,641.36 kg |
| Orbiter Weight at Liftoff | 115,730.00 kg |
| Orbiter Weight at Landing | 88,265.45 kg |
| Landed | Runway 17 dry lake bed at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. |
| Orbits of Earth | 63 |
| Orbital Altitude | 163 nautical miles (187 statute miles) |
Contents |
Crew
- Commander: Frederick H. Hauck
- Pilot: Richard O. Covey
- Payload Commander:
- Mission Specialist 1: John M. Lounge
- Mission Specialist 2: George D. Nelson
- Mission Specialist 3: David C. Hilmers
Mission
STS-26 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center utilizing the Shuttle vehicle Discovery. The primary objective of the mission was to deploy the TDRS-C, and to conduct seven mid-deck experiments that were part of NASA's microgravity science and applications program. This mission marked resumption of Shuttle flights after 1986 51-L accident. The primary payload, NASA Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-3 (TDRS-3) attached to an Inertial Upper Stage (IUS), became second TDRS deployed. After deployment, IUS propelled satellite to geosynchronous orbit. Secondary payloads: Physical Vapor Transport of Organic Solids (PVTOS); Protein Crystal Growth (PCG); Infrared Communications Flight Experiment (IRCFE); Aggregation of Red Blood Cells (ARC); Isoelectric Focusing Experiment (IFE); Mesoscale Lightning Experiment (MLE); Phase Partitioning Experiment (PPE); Earth-Limb Radiance Experiment (ELRAD); Automated Directional Solidification Furnace (ADSF); and two Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSIP) experiments. Orbiter Experiments Autonomous Supporting Instrumentation System-1 (OASIS-1) recorded variety of environmental measurements during various inflight phases of orbiter. The Ku-band antenna in the payload bay was deployed; however, a dish antenna command and actual telemetry did not correspond. Also, the orbiter cabin Flash Evaporator System iced up, raising crew cabin temperature to mid-80s.
Payload
Deploy IUS (lnertial Upper Stage) with Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS)-CT; 3M's Physical Vapor Transport Organics Solids 2 experiment (PVTOS); Automated Directional Solidification Furnace (ADSF); Infrared Communications Flight Experiment (lRCFE); Protein Crystal Growth Il (PCG); Isoelectric Focusing (ISF)-2; Phase Partitioning Experiment (PPE); Aggregation of Red Blood Cells (ARC)-2; Mesoscale Lightning Experiment (MLE)-1; Earth Limb Radiance (ELRAD); Orbiter Experiments (OEX); Autonomous Supporting Instrumentation System (OASlS)-I; two Shuttle Student Involvement Project (SSIP) experiments
Mission patch: 
Books about the Space Shuttle Program
 Buy This Book Click here |
 Buy This Book here |
 Buy This Book Click here |
 Buy This Book Click here |
