STS-4
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Mission insignia |
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| Mission statistics | |||||
| Mission name | STS-4 | ||||
| Space shuttle | Columbia | ||||
| Launch pad | 39-A | ||||
| Launch date | 27 June 1982, 15:00:00 UTC | ||||
| Landing | 4 July 1982, 16:09:31 UTC | ||||
| Mission duration | 7 days, 1 hour, 9 minutes, 31 seconds | ||||
| Number of orbits | 113 | ||||
| Orbital altitude | 365 kilometres (227 mi) | ||||
| Orbital inclination | 28.5° | ||||
| Distance traveled | 4,700,000 kilometres (2,900,000 mi) | ||||
| Crew photo | |||||
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| L-R Hartsfield and Mattingly | |||||
| Related missions | |||||
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STS-4 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission, using the Space Shuttle Columbia. The mission launched on 27 June 1982 and landed a week later on 4 July. STS-4 was the fourth shuttle mission overall, and was also the fourth mission for the Columbia.
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[edit] Crew
| Position | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Thomas K. Mattingly II Second spaceflight |
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| Pilot | Henry W. Hartsfield, Jr. First spaceflight |
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[edit] Backup crew
From STS-4 onwards, NASA halted the appointment and training of complete backup flight crews. Instead, individual flight crew members were assigned backups who could take their place within the prime crew. The decision on whether to appoint a reserve crew member was made on a per-flight basis by flight management teams at Johnson Space Center. Consequently, the last NASA flight to have a full-time backup crew was STS-3.
[edit] Mission parameters
- Mass:
- Orbiter Liftoff: 109,616 kilograms (241,660 lb)
- Orbiter Landing: 94,774 kilograms (208,940 lb)
- Payload: 11,109 kilograms (24,490 lb)
- Perigee: (295 kilometres (183 mi))
- Apogee: (302 kilometres (188 mi))
- Inclination: 28.5°
- Period: 90.3 min
[edit] Mission summary
STS-4 launched from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on 27 June 1982 at 11:00 am EST, with Ken Mattingly as commander, and Henry Hartsfield as pilot. This mission marked the first time the Space Shuttle launched precisely at its scheduled launch time. It was also the last research and development flight in the program, after which NASA considered the shuttle operational.
STS-4's cargo consisted of the first Getaway Special payloads, including nine scientific experiments provided by students from Utah State University, and a classified US Air Force payload of two missile launch-detection systems. (A secret mission control center in Sunnyvale, California participated in monitoring the flight. Mattingly, who was an active-duty naval officer, later described the classified payload—two sensors for detecting missile launches— as "rinky-dink collection of minor stuff they wanted to fly". The payload failed to operate.[1])
In the shuttle's mid-deck, a Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System and the Mono-disperse Latex Reactor flew for the second time. The crew conducted a lightning survey with hand-held cameras, and performed medical experiments on themselves for two student projects. They also operated the Remote Manipulator System with an instrument called the Induced Environment Contamination Monitor mounted on its end, designed to obtain information on gases or particles being released by the orbiter in flight.
Columbia landed on 4 July 1982 at 9:09 am PDT, on the 15,000 feet (4,600 m) concrete runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base, the first Shuttle landing on a concrete runway. President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy greeted the crew upon arrival.
The flight lasted 7 days, 1 hour, 9 minutes and 31 seconds, and covered a total distance of 4,700,000 kilometres (2,900,000 mi) in 112 complete orbits. The mission achieved all objectives except for the Air Force payload, but two SRBs were lost when their main parachutes failed, causing the empty casings to impact the ocean at high velocity and sink. Columbia returned to KSC on 15 July.
[edit] Mission insignia
The path of the red, white, and blue streak on the mission patch indicates the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence.
[edit] 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 15.[2] 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.[2]
| Flight Day | Song | Artist/Composer |
|---|---|---|
| Day 2 | "Up, Up and Away" | The 5th Dimension |
| Day 3 | "Hold That Tiger" | Auburn University Band |
| Day 4 | Taped message for Hank Hartsfield on his wedding anniversary | |
| Day 5 | "Theme from Chariots of Fire" | |
| Day 6 | Delta Tau Delta fraternity song (Mattingly), Delta Chi fraternity song (Hartsfield) | |
| Day 7 | "This Is My Country" |
[edit] See also
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: STS-4 |
[edit] References
- ^ Cassutt, Michael (2009-08). "Secret Space Shuttles". Air & Space. http://www.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?expire=&title=Secret+Space+Shuttles+%7C+Space+Exploration+%7C+Air+%26+Space+Magazine&urlID=406883157&action=cpt&partnerID=285367&cid=50779477&fb=Y&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.airspacemag.com%2Fspace-exploration%2FSecret-Space-Shuttles.html%3Fc%3Dy%26page%3D1. Retrieved February 17, 2012.
- ^ a b Fries, Colin (25 June 2007). "Chronology of Wakeup Calls" (PDF). NASA. http://history.nasa.gov/wakeup%20calls.pdf. Retrieved 13 August 2007.
[edit] External links
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