STS-53

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STS-53
STS-053 shuttle.jpg
Launch of Discovery for a Department of Defense (DoD) mission
Names Space Transportation System-53
Mission type DoD satellite deployment
Operator NASA
COSPAR ID 1992-086A OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
SATCAT no. 22259 OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Mission duration7 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes, 17 seconds
Distance travelled4,883,840 km (3,034,680 mi)
Orbits completed116
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft Space Shuttle Discovery
Launch mass110,655 kg (243,953 lb)
Landing mass87,565 kg (193,048 lb)
Payload mass11,860 kg (26,150 lb)
Crew
Crew size5
Members
Start of mission
Launch dateDecember 2, 1992, 13:24:00 (December 2, 1992, 13:24:00)  UTC (8:24 am  EST)
Launch site Kennedy, LC-39A
Contractor Rockwell International
End of mission
Landing dateDecember 9, 1992, 20:43:17 (December 9, 1992, 20:43:17) UTC (12:43:47 am  PST)
Landing site Edwards, Runway 22
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric orbit
Regime Low Earth orbit
Perigee altitude 365 km (227 mi)
Apogee altitude 376 km (234 mi)
Inclination 57.00°
Period 92.00 minutes
Instruments
  • Battlefield Laser Acquisition Sensor Test (BLAST)
  • Cloud Logic to Optimize Use of Defense Systems (CLOUDS)
  • Cosmic Radiation Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM)
  • Fluid Acquisition and Resupply Experiment (FARE)
  • Get Away Special (GAS)
  • Shuttle Glow Experiment/Cryogenic Heat Pipe Experiment (GCP)
  • Hand-held, Earth-oriented, Real-time, Cooperative, User-friendly, Location-targeting and Environmental System (HERCULES)
  • Microcapsules in Space (MIS-l)
  • Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME-III)
  • Space Tissue Loss (STL)
  • Visual Function Tester (VFT-2)
STS-53 patch.svg
STS-53 mission patch
Sts-53 crew.jpg
Back: Walker, Cabana and Clifford
Front: Bluford and Voss
  STS-52
STS-54  

STS-53 was a NASA Space Shuttle Discovery mission in support of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). It was Discovery's 15th flight. The mission was launched on December 2, 1992, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida. This was also the last mission to have been operated via MCR-2 in JSC. Afterwards the room was restored entirely to its Apollo era appearance.

Contents

Crew

Position Astronaut
Commander David M. Walker
Third spaceflight
Pilot Robert D. Cabana
Second spaceflight
Mission Specialist 1 Guion Bluford
Fourth and last spaceflight
Mission Specialist 2
Flight Engineer
James S. Voss
Second spaceflight
Mission Specialist 3 Michael R. Clifford
First spaceflight

Crew seat assignments

Seat [1] LaunchLanding Space Shuttle seating plan.svg
Seats 1–4 are on the flight deck.
Seats 5–7 are on the mid-deck.
1Walker
2Cabana
3BlufordClifford
4Voss
5CliffordBluford
6Unused
7Unused

Mission highlights

Discovery carried a classified primary payload (DOD-1) for the United States Department of Defense (DoD), two unclassified secondary payloads and nine unclassified middeck experiments. [2]

Discovery's primary payload, USA-89 (1992-086B) is also known as "DoD-1", and was the shuttle's last major payload for the Department of Defense. The satellite was the third launch of a Satellite Data System-2 (SDS 2-3) military communications satellite, after USA-40 on STS-28 and STS-38's deployment of USA-67. [2]

Secondary payloads contained in or attached to Get Away Special (GAS) hardware in the cargo bay included the Orbital Debris Radar Calibration Spheres (ODERACS) satellites and the combined Shuttle Glow Experiment/Cryogenic Heat Pipe Experiment (GCP). [2]

Middeck experiments included Microcapsules in Space (MIS-l); Space Tissue Loss (STL); Visual Function Tester (VFT-2); Cosmic Radiation Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM); Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME-III); Fluid Acquisition and Resupply Experiment (FARE); Hand-held, Earth-oriented, Real-time, Cooperative, User-friendly, Location-targeting and Environmental System (HERCULES); Battlefield Laser Acquisition Sensor Test (BLAST); and the Cloud Logic to Optimize Use of Defense Systems (CLOUDS). [2]

Mission insignia

The five sides represent the Pentagon, the Department of Defense headquarters. The five stars and three stripes of the insignia symbolize the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence.

See also

Related Research Articles

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STS-51-C was the 15th flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program, and the third flight of Space Shuttle Discovery. It launched on January 24, 1985, and made the fourth shuttle landing at the Shuttle Landing Facility at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 27, 1985. STS-51-C was the first shuttle mission dedicated to the United States Department of Defense (DoD), and consequently many details remain classified. NASA reported that a satellite (USA-8) was deployed during the mission using an Inertial Upper Stage booster was deployed and met mission objectives. At just over three days, the mission was shorter in duration than most civilian missions and was the shortest of Discovery's career.

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References

  1. "STS-53". Spacefacts. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "STS-53 (52)". NASA. June 29, 2001. Archived from the original on March 18, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2022.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .