Category Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006

Flight Crew

CULBERTSON Jr., Frank Lee, 44, USN, commander, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-38 (1990)

READDY, William Francis, civilian, pilot, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-42 (1992)

NEWMAN, James Hansen, 36, civilian, mission specialist 1 BURSCH, Daniel Wheeler, 36, USN, mission specialist 2 WALZ, Carl Erwin, 38, USAF, mission specialist 3

Flight Log

The original launch attempt on 17 July was scrubbed during the T — 20 minute hold due to premature and unexplained charging of pyrotechnic initiator controllers on the LH vent arm umbilical and the SRB hold-down bolts. The problem was traced to a faulty control card on the Mobile Launch Platform (MLP). After an abbreviated countdown which commenced on 23 July, the 24 July launch attempt was halted at T — 19 seconds due to problems with the APU turbine assembly in one of the two hydraulic power units on the right SRB. The APUs were replaced on the pad. The launch was rescheduled for 4 August and again for 12 August because of concerns over the Perseid meteor shower which was due to peak on 11 August. The 12 August attempt was aborted at the T — 3 second mark due to a faulty sensor which was monitoring fuel flow on SSME #2. This resulted in the fourth pad abort in the programme and the second of 1993. All three engines were subsequently changed out on the pad. The launch was then scheduled for 10 September, but following loss of

communications with the Mars Observer spacecraft and the NOAA-123 satellite, NASA slipped the launch 48 hours in order to review the design, production and testing of ACTS prior to committing it to launch and deployment.

The ACTS was successfully deployed during FD 1 and, some 45 minutes after leaving the payload bay of Discovery, the TOS was fired to take the satellite towards its geostationary operational orbit. The second deployment of the mission came on FD 2, when ORFEUS-SPAS was released by RMS for six days of independent data collection, the first of a planned series of ASTRO-SPAS missions. The SPAS also carried the IMAX camera, which recorded spectacular images of Discovery flying in orbit both during release and recapture of the pallet satellite.

As ACTS was being checked out in its geosynchronous orbit and ORFEUS was away gathering data, the crew of Discovery settled down to their own science programme of payload bay and mid-deck experiments. These included the exposure to space of selected materials for a short duration, protein crystal growth, chromo­some and plant cell division, high-resolution Shuttle glow spectrograph photography of the aurora, an investigation into polymer membranes processing, further calibra­tion of the Air Force Maui Optical Site and radiation monitoring inside the crew compartment. The crew also continued the programme of Earth resources and phenomena observations.

On FD 5 (16 Sep), Walz (EV1) and Newman (EV2) performed the third and final generic EVA (7 hours 5 minutes) to evaluate tools, tethers, foot restraints and mobil­ity. Part of this programme was connected to the forthcoming Hubble Service Mission manifested for STS-61. This time the RMS was not used to support the EVA, because it was needed later in the flight to retrieve ORFEUS-SPAS. This also provided a “minimum equipment scenario”, with the crew making optimum use of materials already aboard for other purposes. This could prove essential for a mission requiring EVA where no RMS was available.

The landing of STS-51 on 21 September was called off due to the possibility of rain showers within 48 km of the SLF. Discovery eventually came home to the first end-of – mission night landing at the Cape.

Milestones

163rd manned space flight

87th US manned space flight

57th Shuttle mission

17th flight of Discovery

28th US and 52nd flight with EVA operations

1st use of Transfer Orbit Stage

1st end of mission night landing at KSC

3rd and final test and demonstration EVA

Flight Crew

CAMERON, Kenneth Donald, 45, USMC, commander, 3rd mission Previous mission: STS-37 (1991); STS-56 (1993)

HALSELL Jr., James Donald, 39, USAF, pilot, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-65 (1994)

HADFIELD, Chris Austin, 36, Canadian Air Force, mission specialist 1 ROSS, Jerry Lynn, 47, USAF, mission specialist 2, 5th mission Previous missions: STS 61-B (1985); STS-27 (1988); STS-37 (1991); STS-55 (1993)

McARTHUR Jr., William Surles, 44, US Army, mission specialist 3

Flight Log

Because of the planned rendezvous and docking with Mir, this Shuttle mission had only a very small seven-minute window in which to launch. The 11 November launch was scrubbed as a result of bad weather at the TAL sites and the launch was rescheduled to the following day. The original plan had been to have a crew exchange on this mission. Thagard’s back-up on the first NASA residency (Bonnie Dunbar) was originally scheduled to remain on Mir after STS-71 departed, but this option was not followed, so STS-74 was the only docking mission on which no US astronaut was exchanged or returned. Instead, the mission focused on the delivery of hardware and logistics. It did feature an international flavour, however, reflecting the plans for ISS in the coming years. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield was part of the Shuttle crew, and the Canadian-developed RMS was carried once more. The payload bay of Atlantis carried the Russian-built Docking Module and solar array, along with the US-built Orbiter Docking System and a joint US/Russian-built solar array. And of course, on board Mir were the two Russian and one German cosmonaut, together with a range of Russian and European equipment and experiments.

The Russian Docking Module (which, when permanently attached to the Kristall module would give better clearance for further Shuttle dockings) was lifted out of the payload bay by Hadfield, who was operating the RMS. It was positioned just above the Orbiter Docking System, carried on all docking flights at the front of the payload bay to permit physical connection between the Shuttle and the space station. Cameron then fired the downward-facing jets on the Shuttle to move the vehicle “up” to dock, with the Docking Module held on the RMS. The docking between the Docking Module on Atlantis and Mir occurred on FD 4 and for the next three days, the crews of Atlantis and Mir completed a joint programme of activities. This included the transfer of the control of the DM to the main Mir crew. There was also 453.6 kg of water transferred across to the station, along with gifts such as Canadian maple leaf candies and the second guitar to be delivered to the station. New lithium hydroxide canisters were also delivered, which would be used in the event of a further failure of the ECS, requiring further “scrubbing” of the air inside the station. Experiment samples were transferred to Atlantis for the return to Earth and on 18 November, Atlantis separated from the DM to begin its fly around of the station and the journey home, leaving the Mir crew to continue their six-month mission.

In January 1996, NASA pronounced itself happy with the success of Shuttle-Mir missions. Continued discussions with the Russians had resulted in expansion of the programme and two further dockings were included in the Phase 1 programme, bringing the total dockings to nine. Two further long-duration visits by American astronauts were also likely, bringing the total US residencies on the station to seven prior to the commencement of ISS construction.

Milestones

184th manned space flight 103rd US manned space flight 73rd Shuttle mission 15th flight of Atlantis 2nd Shuttle-Mir docking mission

Flight Crew

SEARFOSS, Richard Alan, 41, USAF, commander, 3rd mission Previous missions: STS-58 (1993); STS-76 (1996)

AFTMAN, Scott Douglas, 38, USN, pilot

FINNEHAN, Richard Michael, 41, civilian, mission specialist 1, payload commander, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-78 (1996)

HIRE, Kathryn Patricia, 38, USN, mission specialist 2 WIFFIAMS, Dafydd Rhys, civilian, Canadian, mission specialist 3 BUCKFEY Jr., Jay Clark, 41, civilian, payload specialist 1 PAWEFCZYK, James Anthony, 37, civilian, payload specialist 2

Flight Log

The launch of Neurolab was delayed by 24 hours from 16 April due to problems with one of the two network processors aboard Columbia. These format data and voice communications between the Shuttle and the ground and the unit had to be replaced. The payload for this mission was the final flight of the Spacelab Fong Module, which had first flown in 1983. The science programme it contained was designated Neurolab, and included 26 experiments grouped together to form one of the most extensive investigations into the most complex and least understood part of the human body – the nervous system. The primary objective of this research was to expand our under­standing of how the nervous system develops and functions in microgravity and for such a comprehensive research programme, the test subjects included more than just the seven astronauts. Making the journey with the human crew were rats, mice, crickets, snails and two species of fish.

This mission had its origins in 1991, when NASA proposed a mission to con­tribute to the “Decade of the Brain”. A total of 132 experiment proposals were reduced to 32, with 26 flying on STS-90 and the remaining six reassigned to later

As American residency on Mir draws to a close, so too does another aspect of the Shuttle programme – Spacelab. On 12 February 1998, the Neurolab payload in the Spacelab Long Module is lowered into the cargo bay of Columbia in OPF Bay 1 at KSC. This was the final flight of the European-built Spacelab module system, first flown as Spacelab 1 in November 1983. There had been 16 Spacelab Long Module missions between 1983 and 1998 missions. The research programme covered eight areas. Adult neuronal plasticity studied the ability of neurons to react to different conditions (in this case micro­gravity) to make new connections in new ways, allowing the neurosystem to compensate for the new environment. This programme used rats as the test subjects. Mammalian development research utilised the rats and mice to answer key questions such as “Can walking be learned without gravity?” Aquatic experiments studied the effects of microgravity on otoliths and statolith development and adaptation in oyster toadfish, swordtail fish and freshwater snails. Neurology research on crickets was used to help understand how much normal development is pre-programmed in the genes and how much requires clues from the environment. The remaining studies, which were carried out by the human crew, included investigations into the autonomic nervous system, sleep, vestibular experiments and sensory, motor and performance studies.

Neurolab was activated 1 hour 45 minutes into the mission. The crew followed a single-shift system, with the science crew participating in or activating most of the experiments while the orbiter crew looked after the spacecraft and its systems. The orbiter crew (commander, pilot and MS2/flight engineer) assisted the science crew as required throughout the mission. This was an international, mission with cooperation between NASA and the space agencies of Canada (CSA), France (CNES) and Germany (DARA) as well as the European Space agency (ESA) and the National Development Agency of Japan (NASDA). Most of the research was conducted as planned, except for the mammalian development studies, which were prioritised due to the unexpectedly high mortality rate of the neo-natal rats aboard (55 of the 96 nine – day-old rodents died).

A week into the mission, the crew worked with engineers on the ground to overcome a problem with a system valve in the Regenerative Carbon Dioxide Removal System, which threatened to cut short the flight. A decision to extend the mission was considered, but when the science community indicated that this was not necessary, and with weather conditions expected to deteriorate after the scheduled 3 May landing, the mission was ended as planned after 16 days. It was the end of a highly successful mission, but also of the Spacelab Long Module series.

Milestones

206th manned space flight 120th US manned space flight 90th Shuttle mission 25th flight of Columbia

16th and final flight of Spacelab Long Module 13th and final EDO mission

Flight Crew

PRECOURT, Charles Joseph, 43, USAF, commander, 4th mission Previous missions: STS-55 (1993); STS-71 (1995); STS-84 (1997)

GORIE, Dominic Lee Pudwill, 41, USN, pilot CHANG-DIAZ, Franklin Ramon de Los Angeles, 48, civilian, mission specialist 1, 6th mission

Previous missions: STS 61-C (1986); STS-34 (1989); STS-46 (1992); STS-60 (1994); STS-75 (1996)

LAWRENCE, Wendy Barrien, 38, mission specialist 2, 3rd mission Previous missions: STS-67 (1995); STS-86 (1997)

KAVANDI, Janet Lynn, mission specialist 3

RYUMIN, Valery Viktorovich, 58, civilian, Russian, mission specialist 4, 4th mission

Previous missions: Soyuz 25 (1977); Soyuz 32 (1979); Soyuz 35 (1980) NASA 7 Mir EO-25 resident down only:

THOMAS, Andrew Sydney Withiel, 46, civilian, mission specialist 5,

Mir EO-25 cosmonaut researcher, NASA board engineer 7, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-77 (1996)

Flight Log

Apart from a slight delay in tanking operations, the launch of the final Shuttle mission to Mir proceeded nominally. This was the first docking mission for Discovery, which successfully joined the space station on 4 June. The hatches were opened on the same day and Thomas transferred to the Shuttle crew, ending 130 days of residency on Mir. Prior to his residency, Thomas had been criticised by the Russians for his limited ability to speak the language, but with Russian being the only language spoken on

Mir, he soon became well versed. With the transfer of Thomas to the Discovery crew, a total of 907 days had been logged by the seven resident astronauts aboard Mir. In addition, there had been a US presence in space for 812 consecutive days and on Mir for 802 consecutive days.

During the four days of joint operations, the crews transferred 500 kg of water and a further 2,130 kg of experiments and supplies. US long-term experiments were also moved back into Discovery or the SpaceHab module from the station. The Shuttle crew completed a range of secondary experiments during docked activ­ities. Although he was part of the Shuttle crew, cosmonaut Valery Ryumin, who had spent about a year aboard the Salyut 6 station on two six-month missions in 1979 and 1980, was aboard to evaluate the state of the station and, according to NASA, to confirm the station’s condition for mothballing and decommissioning. Instead, he indicated that it was still viable for future operations. One of the less publicised “experiments’’ was the transfer of a stowed American EMU through the smaller opening of the Orbiter Docking System (ODS), a process which would become a regular operation on ISS. The EMU are normally bundled in a Lower Torso Assem­bly Restraint Bag (LTARB) for ease of handling, but during ground tests, it was found that it took less time to simply stow the gear and clear a path through loose equipment around the connecting hatches. With no high-fidelity mock-ups on Earth, it was useful to try this method aboard an actual station in space. The information gained would be valuable in planning such transfers on ISS.

After the joint programme had been completed the hatches were sealed and the spacecraft separated on 8 June, marking the final Shuttle docking mission and the conclusion of Phase 1 of the ISS programme. It was now time to move toward the assembly missions for ISS later in the year.

Over the preceding six years, considerable hurdles had been overcome, differences ironed out and a strong partnership formed. This resulted in ten missions and nine dockings to the Mir complex, the residence of seven astronauts on Mir and training for five cosmonauts to fly on the Shuttle. The difficulties, and at times dangers, of long – duration flight were quickly learned by the Americans – something the Russians had been aware of for years. For the Russians, their learning curve was in accepting an international cooperative partner beyond the former Soviet Bloc countries and friend­ship agreements. The Shuttle (and American money) gave the aging Mir station a prolonged life and Mir gave NASA the experience in space station operations it badly needed before committing to ISS operations. Lessons had been learned the hard way at times, but they were essential lessons. Without Shuttle-Mir, the ISS programme would have been much harder to initiate.

Milestones

207th manned space flight

121st US manned space flight

91st Shuttle mission

24th flight of Discovery

9th and final Shuttle-Mir docking mission

11th SpaceHab mission (6th single module)

1st docking mission for Discovery

1st user of super-lightweight ET

Completion of ISS Phase 1 programme

Flight Crew

GORIE, Dominic Lee, 44, USN, commander, 3rd mission Previous missions: STS-91 (1998); STS-99 (2000)

KELLY, Mark Edward, 37, USN, pilot

GODWIN, Linda Maxine, 49, civilian, mission specialist 1, 4th mission Previous missions: STS-37 (1991); STS-59 (1994); STS-76 (1996)

TANI, Daniel Michio, 40, civilian, mission specialist 2

ISS-4 crew up only:

ONUFRIYENKO, Yuri Ivanovich, 40, Russian Air Force, mission specialist 4, ISS-4 and Soyuz TM commander, 2nd mission Previous mission: Soyuz TM23 (1996)

BURSCH, Daniel Wheeler, 44, USN, mission specialist 5, ISS-4 flight engineer 1, 4th mission

Previous missions: STS-51 (1993); STS-68 (1994); STS-77 (1996)

WALZ, Carl Erwin, 46, USAF, mission specialist 5, ISS-4 flight engineer 2,

4th mission

Previous missions: STS-51 (1993); STS-65 (1994); STS-79 (1996)

ISS-3 crew down only:

CULBERTSON Jr., Frank Lee, 52, civilian, ISS-3 commander,

mission specialist 3, 3rd mission

Previous missions: STS-38 (1990); STS-51 (1993)

TYURIN, Mikhail Vladislavovich, 41, civilian, Russian ISS-3 flight engineer, mission specialist 4

DEZHUROV, Vladimir Nikolayevich, 39, Russian Air Force, ISS-3 Soyuz commander, mission specialist 5, 2nd mission Previous mission: Soyuz TM21 (1995)

Flight Log

Originally scheduled for launch on 3 December, the launch was postponed for 24 hours on 29 November in order the allow the ISS-3 crew to complete an extra unplanned EVA to clear the obstruction preventing Progress M1-7 from hard – docking with the station. The 4 December launch was postponed at the T — 5 minute point due to unfavourable weather in the KSC area, which remained throughout the duration of the launch window. After the successful launch, Endeavour docked to ISS during FD 3 (7 December) and remained linked to the station for the next 189 hours. There was one EVA, which was conducted by Godwin and Tani from the Shuttle airlock (instead of Quest) on FD 6. During the EVA (10 Dec for 4 hours 12 minutes), the astronauts installed insulation on the solar array rotation mechanism and retrieved antenna covers that had been stowed in a storage location on the outside of the station for return to Earth, and which may be returned for reuse on the station at a future date. They also performed a number of get-ahead tasks for the extensive EVAs planned for the coming year.

The flight was extended to 12 days in order to complete all the assigned main­tenance and logistics transfer tasks assigned it. During several days of logistics

transfer, the combined crew moved over 2,700 kg from the mid-deck of Endeavour and the Raffaello logistics module on to the station. This included over 385 kg of food, 453 kg of clothing, 136 kg of experiments and associated equipment, 362 kg of EVA hardware, and 272 kg of medical equipment. Over 900 kg of trash, unwanted gear and equipment was placed in the module for return to Earth, and in addition to the exchange of ISS resident crew personal items, the mid-deck of Endeavour was used for the return of several experiment results and samples from the research conducted during the ISS-3 residency. There were also several experiments conducted in the mid­deck of Endeavour during the mission, some of which would be transferred to the station while the others would return on the Shuttle.

While in orbit, the combined crew of astronauts and cosmonauts took time out to pay tribute to the victims of the 11 September attacks in the United States and the rescuers and investigation teams still working on the aftermath of the tragic day.

The official hand-over between ISS resident crews occurred on 13 December amid a week of briefings and exchange activities. One of the three Shuttle Inertial Measurement Units (IMU-2), the orbiter’s primary navigation units, experienced a problem on 12 December and was taken offline. Only two of the units were working at the time to save electricity, so IMU-3 was brought back on line to support operations. The failed unit worked after this exchange but remained off line for the rest of the flight without impact upon the mission. Prior to return to Earth after undocking from the station, the crew deployed a small satellite (Starshine 2) from a GAS canister located in the payload bay. It was estimated that over 30,000 students from 650 schools in 26 countries would track the satellite during its eight months orbiting the Earth.

Milestones

229th manned space flight

137th US manned space flight

107th Shuttle mission

17th flight of Endeavour

51st US and 84th flight with EVA operations

12th Shuttle ISS mission

4th Endeavour ISS mission

4th MPLM flight

2nd MPLM-2 Raffaello flight

1st utilisation flight

. SOYUZ TMA8 Posted by admin in Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006 on November 2, 2015 Flight Crew VINOGRADOV, Pavel Vladimirovich, 52, civilian, Russian ISS-13 and Soyuz commander, 2nd mission Previous mission: Soyuz TM26 (1997) WILLIAMS, Jeffery Nels, 48, US Army, ISS-13 science officer, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-101 (2000) PONTES, Marcos Caesar, 43, Brazilian Air Force, space flight participant Flight Log The appointment of the Brazilian astronaut to the crew came from a commercial agreement between the Brazilian space agency and the Russian space agency. The programme of scientific experiments under the Centenario label included eight small experiments being operated by Pontes in the Russian segment; one biomedical experiment, three biotechnology experiments, two engineering research experiments, and two educational experiments. The Brazilian also participated in a number of ceremonial and media activities as the first Brazilian in space. He returned to Earth on 9 April with the ISS-12 crew aboard TMA7. The docking with ISS had occurred on 1 April. The hand over activities between the two main crews took a week before the ISS-12 crew and Pontes returned to Earth, leaving the new crew to continue the long ISS programme. As well as science work, ISS-13 conducted routine and unplanned maintenance, and exercised to maintain their condition during their six-month tour of duty. Earth resources and photography had long been an important programme from manned spacecraft and this flight was no exception. The crew photographed and observed the eruption of the Cleveland volcano on the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Their first EVA occurred on 2 June (6 hours 31 minutes) and included tasks on both the US and Russian segments. The EVA began from Pirs with the crew wearing The first Brazilian astronaut, Marcos Pontes (centre), works aboard ISS during April 2006 Russian Orlan M suits. They installed a new valve nozzle on the side of Zvezda that would be used as a hydrogen exhaust from the Elektron oxygen generator. They also photographed the antenna to be used for ATV docking for analysis on Earth, to ensure they are correctly aligned when ATV operations begin. The crew also retrieved several exposure experiments and cassettes and removed a failed camera, replacing it with a new one on the MT. In July, STS-121 visited ISS in the second of two return-to-flight missions. This time, the Shuttle delivered 3,356 kg of supplies to the station, as well as German ESA astronaut Thomas Reiter. He transferred to the main crew to work with ISS-13, returning the ISS crew to a complement of three for the first time since May 2003. Reiter would conduct the ESA Astrolab science programme while aboard the station. With the successful flight of STS-121, the expansion of the station would soon be resuming as the ISS-13 residence wound down. Reiter would continue with the ISS-14 crew for a few more weeks. On 3 August, Williams and Reiter completed an EVA (5 hours 54 minutes) that included the installation of hardware in preparation for future ISS assembly work, as well as deploying a number of instruments and experi­ments on the outside of the station. In September 2006, the ISS-13 crew hosted the STS-115 crew for the first Shuttle assembly mission since STS-113 in November 2002. While docked to the station, the STS-115 crew added a further solar array truss and transferred logistics to support station operations. On 19 September, the day after the STS-115 crew departed and the same day the Soyuz TMA9 crew were launched, the ISS-13 crew, after servicing the Elektron device in the service module, noted a small leak of KOH (potassium hydroxide, “caustic potash”) electrolyte bubbles from the O2 outlet nozzle. The crew immediately manu­ally activated the fire alarm, which automatically shut down the ventilation system. Following the mission rules after such incidents, and as an extra precaution, all three men donned goggles, gloves, and surgical masks. The released caustic liquid (which was deemed to be Level 2 Toxicity – an “irritant”) was immediately cleaned up with a cloth and no further leaks were noted. About 30 minutes later, the Vodzukh was activated, with a charcoal filter installed to scrub the air. Recorded air data remained well within acceptable values and protective gear was soon no longer required as onboard operations returned to the nominal schedule. At the time of the situation, ground controllers instigated a “spacecraft emergency” procedure to ensure that TDRS communication coverage would be at the highest priority. In the event this was not required and TDRS coverage was returned to normal. The ISS-13 crew handed over to the ISS-14 crew the following week, completing several days of joint activities with them and space flight participant Anousheh Ansari. The ISS-13 crew landed in TMA8 with Ansari in the early hours of 29 September. Milestones 247th manned space flight 101st Russian manned space flight 94th manned Soyuz mission 8th manned Soyuz TMA mission 41st Russian and 96th flight with EVA operations 10th ISS Soyuz mission (10S) 13th ISS resident crew (EO-13) 10th visiting mission (VC-10) 5th resident caretaker ISS crew (2 person – until July) 1st Brazilian citizen in space LAUNCH SYSTEMS Posted by admin in Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006 on November 2, 2015 In the history of manned space flight, there have been numerous designs for systems to carry people into space. Many have reached the point of almost making a manned space launch, but have been cancelled prior to the event. Between 1961 and 2006, there have been just two “rocket planes” (X-15 and Spaceship One) that have touched space, while only eight launch systems (seven rockets and the Shuttle) have actually achieved manned space launcher status. Astro-flights Throughout the space age, there has been a worldwide uncertainty as to precisely where the atmosphere ends and space begins. Some say 50 miles (80.45 km), others 62 miles (100 km), and there are those who claim it doesn’t happen until you are in orbit. However, the X-15 rocket plane reached altitudes of between 50.70 and 66.75 miles An X-15 is launched from beneath a B-52 bomber (81.59 and 107.42km) on thirteen “astro-flights” by eight pilots between July 1962 and August 1968. In the early 1960s, the USAF decided that a military pilot making a flight over 50 miles (80.45 km) would be eligible for the rating of Air Force Astronaut Pilot and awarded Astronaut Wings to those who achieved it. The five US Air Force pilots were awarded Astronaut Wings at the time, but the three civilian pilots had to wait until 2006 to receive theirs. The award should also therefore be given to Mike Melvill and Brian Binnie, who flew the space tourist prototype vehicle Spaceship One in 2004. The X-15 flights used the B-52 aircraft to “air-launch” the rocket research plane by dropping it from beneath the wing, usually at about 45,000 ft (13,716 m), where it began its descent to the ground either as a glide flight or by igniting its engines and completing its mission. Spaceship One was carried to 13,716 m and 14,356m by the White Knight launch aircraft for its two record-breaking missions. The Orbital Programmes Posted by admin in Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006 on November 2, 2015 There have been countless proposals and plans for programmes to support the manned exploration of space. Some never left the drawing boards, while others got as far as having hardware produced, only to be cancelled for a variety of reasons prior to the first manned flight. The following are the main manned programmes that have been conducted since 1961. For more in-depth information about these pro­grammes, see the Bibliography. INTO SPACE The Cold War-inspired space race launched man into space sooner than was perhaps planned, and with rapidly developed hardware. America developed the bell-shaped Mercury capsule and the Soviet Union came up with a “space ball”, all to achieve the goal of “Man in Space Soonest”, or “MISS”, as the Americans called it. The Soviet Union won this particular race, with their one-man Vostok capsule, shaped like a ball. It had an ejection seat to allow emergency escape and for the cosmonaut to eject prior to landing. It was one way of saving development time in order to get their “Man in Space Soonest”. VOSTOK 3 AND 4 Posted by admin in Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006 on November 2, 2015 1962 alpha upsilon 1 (Vostok 3), alpha nu 1 (Vostok 4) 11 (Vostok 3) and 12 (Vostok 4) August 1962 Pad 1, Site 5, Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan (both vehicles) 15 August 1962 South of Karaganda, Kazakhstan (Vostok 3), Vostok 4 landed a further 190 km away R7 (8K72K); spacecraft serial number (11F63/3KA) #5 (Vostok 3); and #6 (Vostok 4) 3 days 22hrs 22 min (Vostok 3); 2 days 22hrs 57 min (Vostok 4) Sokol (Falcon) – Vostok 3; Berkut (Golden Eagle) – Vostok 4 Simultaneous extended-duration flight of two spacecraft Flight Crew NIKOLAYEV, Andrian Grigoryevich, 32, Soviet Air Force, pilot Vostok 3 POPOVICH, Pavel Romanovich, 31, Soviet Air Force, pilot Vostok 4 Flight Log The dual flight of Vostok 3 and 4 resulted from a desire to demonstrate the ability to control two separate spacecraft in orbit at the same time (crucial to Soviet plans for multi-spacecraft exploration of the Moon and the creation of space stations) and to monitor the condition of two cosmonauts simultaneously during and after relatively long duration flights. This was not seen as the prime objective publicly, however, which was proved by the spectacular and ill-informed coverage of the missions in the western media in expectation of a space docking by the two spacecraft, and which only served to perpetuate the myth of a Soviet lead in space technology. Vostok 3, with pilot Andrian Nikolayev, was launched at 13: 30 hrs Baikonur time on 11 August and was soon in a 64.93° orbit, with an apogee of 227 km (141 miles). The mission was described as a long-duration one by Soviet officials, who sprang a shock in the west at 13 : 02 hrs the following day by launching Vostok 4 crewed by Pavel Popovich, as Vostok 3 flew overhead. As Vostok 4 entered orbit, it passed to within 6.5 km (4 miles) of Vostok 3. The relatively close encounter was brief, and with no manoeuvring ability it was impossible to achieve a rendezvous in space. The western media, however, lapped it all up. The dual mission of “Nik and Pop”, as the cosmonauts were dubbed, was described as a rendezvous in space and the mission as a huge leap forward by the Soviets towards a manned landing on the Moon in a matter of years. Nikolayev (Vostok 3, top) and Popovich (Vostok 4, bottom) shown inside their respective spacecraft during their historic “group flight”, demonstrating the wonders of microgravity. In their individual orbits – Vostok 4’s apogee was 234 km (146 miles), with a 64.98° inclination – Nikolayev and Popovich monitored their health and were allowed to undo their straps to float about freely in the rather spacious cockpit. This was not merely a luxury, but an experiment to see whether the unrestrained movement would bring about inner ear disturbance and cause nausea, which in the case of Nikolayev and Popovich it did not. They ate proper packaged food, such as cutlets, pies and fruit, and Nikolayev was the first cosmonaut to be featured on national TV programmes from his cockpit. The official objectives of the two missions were to maintain radio contact with Earth; carry out regular psychological, physiological and vestibular tests; orientate the spacecraft using attitude control thrusters; make observations using binoculars and the naked eye; float free during the fourth and each second orbit for a period of between 50 to 60 minutes at a time; regulate cabin atmosphere; conduct biological experiments; take food four times a day; and record in a log book and tape recorder their observations and progress of the flight plan. The missions were eagerly used by Premier Nikita Khrushchev for propaganda purposes, hammering home the Soviet lead over the USA. By the end of the Vostok 3 mission, after 64 orbits, Vostok 4 had drifted 2,720 km (1,690 miles) away. Nikolayev landed south of the town of Karaganda at T + 3 days 22 hours 22 minutes on 15 August, and the same day, Popovich landed 190 km (118 miles) away at T + 2 days 22 hours 57 minutes. Neither had succumbed to space sickness and this led to the conclusion that the affliction was experienced by only some space travellers and not all who made long journeys. Even longer Vostok missions were then planned. Milestones 7th and 8th manned space flights 3rd and 4th Soviet manned space flights 3rd and 4th Vostok manned flights 1st joint manned space flight 1st in-flight public TV The Third Decade: 1981-1990 Posted by admin in Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006 on November 2, 2015 Flight Crew KOVALENOK, Vladimir Vasilyevich, 39, Soviet Air Force, commander, 3rd mission Previous missions: Soyuz 25 (1977); Soyuz 29 (1978) SAVINYKH, Viktor Petrovich, 41, civilian, flight engineer Flight Log The long-duration mission of Soyuz T4 was not originally intended as such but was more the result of rescheduling after the Soyuz 33 docking abort cancelled some international Interkosmos flights, leading to a situation where a Mongolian and a Romanian were still to visit Salyut. The station had fortunately been given a stay of execution by the Soyuz T3 mission. Soyuz T4, set for a mission that would last long enough to accommodate the two Interkosmos missions and verify a new Soyuz spacecraft for a period of extended docking with Salyut, took off at midnight from Baikonur, the second such launch since Soyuz 9. On board were Vladimir Kovalenok, who was already rather familiar with Salyut 6, and his flight engineer, Viktor Savinykh. Though he was a rookie, Savinykh nevertheless had the unique statistic of being both the hundredth person and the fiftieth Soviet to enter space. As the two visiting crews had not trained on Soyuz T and were not qualified to return in one, the resident crew would not have an exchange of vehicle to support an extended-duration mission, so no attempt would be made to exceed the space flight endurance record on this mission. After docking with Salyut, the crew unpacked Progress 12 and finished off some refurbishment work, including repairs to a battery unit and a condensation unit on the thermal control system. This was necessary because only one solar panel was gen­erating enough power, and as a result excessive condensation was forming inside the station. Kovalenok and Savinykh then discarded Progress 12, the last unmanned tanker to berth at Salyut 6, and prepared for their first visit, on 23 March, by the End of an era. The T4 crew’s return to Earth brought Salyut 6 operations to a close. The crew is seen here displaying the national emblems of the communist countries whose representatives visited the station during the Soviet and Interkosmos missions between 1977 and 1981 Mongolian mission of Soyuz 39. After the brief visit, the crew then changed the docking unit on Soyuz T4, possibly to demonstrate the space rescue capability. By taking the docking unit out of Soyuz, it was possible to dock another Soyuz with it, in an operation that may have been prompted by the near disaster on Soyuz 33 when the two crewmen could have been left stranded in space. Another international mission followed on 15 May, this time by a Romanian, before Kovalenok and Savinykh mothballed Salyut 6 for the last time and headed home. Soyuz T4 landed at T + 74 days 17 hours 37 minutes 23 seconds, 124 km (77 miles) east of Dzhezkazgan. Maximum altitude achieved during the mission was 374 km (232 miles), at 51.6°. The mission of Salyut 6 was not over, however, as a new module called Cosmos 1267, the same size as Salyut, docked with it on 19 June, remaining in orbit until the whole combination was de-orbited in July 1982. The Cosmos 1267 Heavy Cosmos module, flight tested as Cosmos 929, was launched by a Proton booster on 25 April. It performed extensive orbital manoeuvres and even dispatched an unmanned re-entry capsule back to Earth for recovery on 15 May. Further orbital manoeuvres were made by the joint craft and it became evident that future Salyuts and other generation space stations would be enlarged by the addition of other Heavy Cosmos derivatives. Salyut 6 was not manned again after the end of the T4 mission. It re-entered the atmosphere in July 1982, once Salyut 7 had been successfully placed in orbit to replace it. Salyut 6 had been an outstanding success for the Soviet Union, at a time when all bar three US astronauts were grounded between the end of Apollo and the beginning of the Shuttle program. Milestones 78th manned space flight 47th Soviet manned space flight 40th Soyuz manned space flight 3rd Soyuz T manned space flight 100th person in space Flight Crew DZHANIBEKOV, Vladimir Aleksandrovich, 38, Soviet Air Force, commander, 2nd mission Previous mission: Soyuz 27 (1978) GURRAGCHA, Jugderdemidyin, 33, Mongolian People’s Army, cosmonaut researcher Flight Log During the 1960s, the name of a certain Nigerian leader used to terrify newscasters. The name of the next spaceman could also have caused apoplexy in newsrooms around the world had he not been the one-hundred-and-first and a Mongolian. Jugderdemidyin Gurragcha and his commander Vladimir Dzhanibekov were launched at 19:59 hrs local time from the Baikonur Cosmodrome and a day later were inside Salyut 6 with residents Kovalenok and Savinykh. The experiments were mainly medically oriented, but also included Gurragcha’s photography of his home­land to conduct an Earth resources survey of oil, gas and mineral deposits, and the use of a visual polarising analyser to assess the effects of prolonged exposure to space on the station’s portholes. Maximum altitude achieved during the 51.6° mission was 355 km (221 miles). Gurragcha may have been one of the few space travellers to have reacted violently to weightlessness. Only one photo of him aboard Salyut 6 has ever been released, but he seemed in good spirits after landing in fog and drizzle at T + 7 days 20 hours 42 minutes 3 seconds, 169 km (105 miles) southeast of Dzhezkazgan. Milestones 79th manned space flight 48th Soviet manned space flight 41st Soyuz manned space flight 38th (original) Soyuz manned space flight 1st flight by a Mongolian 8th Interkosmos flight   Dzhanibekov (right) and Gurragcha in the Salyut Hall at TsPK during training for their mission to Salyut 6   STS 51-D Posted by admin in Praxis Manned Spaceflight Log 1961-2006 on November 2, 2015 Int. Designation 1985-028A Launched 12 April 1985 Launch Site Pad 39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida Landed 19 April 1985 Landing Site Runway 33, Kennedy Space Center, Florida Launch Vehicle OV-103 Discovery/ET-18/SRB BI-018/SSME #1 2109; #2 2018; #3 2012 Duration 6 days 23 hrs 55 min 23 sec Callsign Discovery Objective Satellite deployment mission Flight Crew BOBKO, Karol Joseph, 47, USAF, commander, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS-6 (1983) WILLIAMS, Donald Edward, 42, USN, pilot GRIGGS, Stanley David, civilian, mission specialist 1 HOFFMAN, Jeffrey Alan, 40, civilian, mission specialist 2 SEDDON, Margaret Rhea, 37, civilian, mission specialist 3 GARN, Edwin Jacob “Jake”, 52, US Senator, payload specialist 1 WALKER, Charles David, 36, civilian, payload specialist 2, 2nd mission Previous mission: STS 41-D (1984) Flight Log This mission was originally designated STS-14or STS41-F. After the STS 41-D abort, much of the 41-F cargo was incorporated into a new flight attempt and the mission was re-designated as STS 51-E with a TDRS satellite as the primary payload. This flight was to use the original 41-F crew and the orbiter Challenger, plus two unique payload specialists, Frenchman Patrick Baudry and US Senator Jake Garn, the first space passenger-observer. The fated 41-F/51-E mission was again cancelled, this time because a fault was found in the TDRS satellite, due for launch in February. Challenger was rolled back to the VAB to be configured for a later mission, while 51-E and its crew took on the planned 51-D mission mantle, ousting that crew and now assigned both new payloads and a new orbiter, Discovery. In the ensuing mammoth crew reshuffle for 1985 flights, Baudry was replaced by an original 51-D McDonnell Douglas payload specialist, Charlie Walker, making a unique second space flight. The new launch date was set as 12 April 1985, but when it arrived it was so dark and gloomy that observers were resigned to a launch scrub as the count was inevitably held for 55 minutes, following a short hold due to a stray ship in the SRB splashdown zone. With just 55 seconds of the launch window remaining, the The crew of STS 51-D display the “fly swatter” devices they fabricated to activate the Leasat satellite go-ahead was given to proceed with the count, surprising most observers including astronaut John Young, who was reporting rain drops on the window of the Shuttle training aircraft prowling the skies over the launch pad. Discovery disappeared into thick clouds seconds after lifting off in gloom at 08: 59 hrs local time. The routine deployment of Anik was followed by that of Leasat. Deployment from the payload bay should have activated a spring on the satellite to initiate spin-up and antenna deployment, but clearly this had not happened and yet another Shuttle – deployed satellite was in deep trouble. A contingency EVA was suggested, during which Jeff Hoffman and David Griggs would manually deploy the spring by pulling an arming pin on the side of the satellite while Discovery performed an extremely close station-keeping manoeuvre. This was deemed far too risky and instead the crew manufactured a “fly swatter” device using on-board materials, which could be placed on the end of the RMS during an EVA so that the robot arm could pull the pin. Hoffmann (EV1) and Griggs (EV2) did their job during a 3 hour 10 minute EVA on 16 April, and it was left to Rhea Seddon operating the RMS to try to pull the pin on Leasat as Discovery closed in. The attempt was useless and Leasat was left stranded. Observers noted that Jake Garn was missing from most of the in-flight TV broadcast and assumed correctly that the senator was having a rather uncomfortable time in the mid-deck getting used to weightlessness. His payload specialist colleague, Charlie Walker, busied himself operating CFES for a second time. Discovery made the fourth consecutive landing at the Kennedy Space Center on runway 33 at T + 6 days 23 hours 55 minutes 23 seconds, damaging its brakes and bursting a tyre as commander Karol Bobko tried to compensate for crosswinds. Maximum altitude of the 28° orbit was 401 km (249 miles). Milestones 104th manned space flight 47th US manned space flight 16th Shuttle mission 4th flight of Discovery 1st flight with unscheduled EVA 1st flight of a political observer 1st re-flight of a payload specialist 21st US and 30th flight with EVA operations « Previous 1 … 6 7 8 9 10 … 20 Next » Tweet Copyright © 2025 Aviation – airports, aircraft, helicopters … - Everything about aviation. 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