2/17/13

NASA - STS-61

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Mission Archives
STS61 Mission:FirstHubbleSpaceTelescopeServicingMission SpaceShuttle:Endeavour LaunchPad:39B LaunchWeight:250,314pounds Launched:December2,19934:27:00a.m.EST LandingSite:KennedySpaceCenter,Florida Landing:December13,1993,12:25:37a.m.EST LandingWeight:211,210pounds Runway:33 RolloutDistance:7,922feet RolloutTime:53seconds Revolution:163 MissionDuration:10days,19hours,58minutes,37seconds OrbitAltitude:321nauticalmiles OrbitInclination:28.45degrees MilesTraveled:4.4million CrewMembers

Imageabove:STS61CrewphotowithCommanderRichardO.Covey,PilotKennethD.Bowersox,PayloadCommander F.StoryMusgraveandMissionSpecialistsKathrynC.Thornton,ClaudeNicollier,JeffreyA.HoffmanandTomAkers. ImageCredit:NASA LaunchHighlights LaunchoriginallyscheduledtooccurfromLaunchPad39A,butafterrollout,contaminationwasfound inthePad39APayloadChangeoutRoomandadecisionwasmadetomovetheshuttleandpayloads toPad39B.RollaroundoccurredonNov.15.ThefirstlaunchattemptonDec.1wasscrubbeddueto outoflimitweatherconditionsattheShuttleLandingFacilityintheeventofareturntolaunchsite contingency.LaunchonDec.2occurredonschedule. MissionHighlights Thefinalshuttleflightof1993wasoneofmostchallengingandcomplexmannedmissionseverattempted.Duringa
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2/17/13

NASA - STS-61

recordfivebacktobackspacewalkstotaling35hoursand28minutes,twoteamsofastronautscompletedthefirst servicingoftheHubbleSpaceTelescope(HST).Inmanyinstances,taskswerecompletedsoonerthanexpectedanda fewcontingenciesthatdidarisewerehandledsmoothly. Hubblerendezvous,grappleandberthingoccurredonflightdaythree,withNicollierusingtheremotemanipulatorsystem armtopositionthe43foot(13meter)longHubbleuprightinpayloadbay.Throughoutmission,commandstoHubble issuedfromSpaceTelescopeOperationsControlCenter(STOCC)atGoddardSpaceFlightCenter.Aftereachservicing taskcompleted,STOCCcontrollersverifiedelectricalinterfacesbetweenreplacementhardwareandtelescope. Onflightdayfour,firstEVAteamofMusgraveandHoffmanperformedEVA#1,replacingtwoRateSensingUnits(RSUs), eachhousingpairofgyroscopestwoElectronicControlUnitswhichdirecttheRSUsandeightelectricalfuseplugs.Only unexpectedproblemoccurredwhenHoffmanandMusgravehaddifficultyclosingcompartmentdoorsafterreplacing RSUs.Sevenhour,54minutespacewalksecondlongestinU.S.historytodate,toppedonlybySTS49EVAlastingeight hours,29minutes.DuringEVAs,NicollieroperatedrobotarmcarryingoneoftwoEVAcrewmembers. OneofprimaryservicinggoalsinstallationofnewsolararraysaccomplishedduringEVA#2,performedonflightday fivebyThorntonandAkersandlastingsixhours,35minutes.Timelinewasreworkedtoaccommodatejettisonofoneof twooriginalsolararrays,whichcouldnotbefullyretractedduetokinkinframework.Othersolararraystowedinpayload bayandreplacementpairsetofmodifiedspareswereinstalledwithoutdifficulty. ExpectedfourhourreplacementofoneofHubble'sfivescientificinstruments,WideField/PlanetaryCamera(WF/PC), completedinabout40minutesbyHoffmanandMusgraveduringEVA#3onflightdaysix.WF/PCIIisupgradedspare modifiedtocompensateforflawinHSTprimarymirror.Also,twonewmagnetometersinstalledattopoftelescopeduring thesixhour,48minuteEVA. EVA#4performedonflightdaysevenbyThorntonandAkers.HighSpeedPhotometer,oneofHubblescientific instruments,removedandreplacedwithCorrectiveOpticsSpaceTelescopeAxialReplacement(COSTAR)unit.Tasktook lesstimetocompletethanexpected.COSTARdesignedtoredirectlighttothreeoffourremainingHubbleinstrumentsto compensateforflawinprimarymirroroftelescope.ThorntonandAkersalsoinstalledcoprocessortoenhancememory andspeedofHubblecomputer.Duringsixhour,50minuteEVA,AkerssetnewU.S.spacewalkingrecordof29hours, 39minutes,toppingEugeneCernan's20yearoldrecordof24hours,14minutes.ThorntonisleadingU.S.femalespace walkerwithtotalof21hours,10minutes. FinalEVAperformedbyHoffmanandMusgraveonflightdayeight.Duringsevenhour,21minutelongEVA#5,Hoffman andMusgravereplacedSolarArrayDriveElectronics(SADE)unitandinstalledGoddardHighResolutionSpectrograph Redundancy(GHRS)kitalsoinstalledtwoprotectivecoversoveroriginalmagnetometers.Afterspacewalkcompleted, thenewsolararraysandtwohighgainantennasweredeployedbySTOCC.HSTwasalsoreboostedtoaslightlyhigher orbitof321nauticalmiles(595kilometers)onflightdayeightpriortothelastEVA. Hubblewasredeployedonflightdaynine.Releasewasdelayedseveralhourstoallowtroubleshootingoferraticdata telemetryfromHubblesubsystemsmonitorproblemhadoccurredbeforeandwasnotrelatedtoservicing.President ClintonandVicePresidentGorecongratulatedcrew,andSwissministerofinternalaffairscalledthefollowingdayto congratulateNicollier.

NASA'sJohnF.KennedySpaceCenter Findthisarticleat: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/archives/sts61.html

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