Space Shuttle Discovery
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Shuttle Orbiter Discovery (NASA Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) is a NASA Space Shuttle.
First flown on August 30, 1984, Discovery is the third operational space shuttle, and the oldest remaining in service. It has performed both research and International Space Station (ISS) assembly missions.
In 1988 It carried the first Goldfish crackers into space.
The spacecraft takes its name from previous ships of exploration named Discovery, primarily HMS Discovery, a ship that accompanied explorer James Cook on his third and final major voyage. Others include Henry Hudson's ship Discovery which he used in 1610–1611 to search for a Northwest Passage, and RRS Discovery, a vessel used for expeditions to Antarctica in 1901-1904 by Scott and Shackleton (and still preserved as a museum). The shuttle shares a name with Discovery One, the spaceship from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Discovery was the shuttle that launched the Hubble Space Telescope. The second and third Hubble Space Telescope service missions were also conducted by Discovery. It has also launched the Ulysses probe and three TDRS satellites. Discovery has been chosen twice as the return to flight orbiter, first as the return to flight orbiter after the Challenger Disaster in 1986, and as the orbiter for the return to flight mission in July 2005, after the Columbia Disaster. Discovery also carried Project Mercury astronaut John Glenn, who was 77 at the time, back into space during STS-95 on October 29, 1998, making him the oldest human being to venture into space.
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STS-114 mission
On July 26, 2005 at 10:39 EDT, Discovery launched into space on mission STS-114, marking the first shuttle launch since the February 2003 Columbia Disaster. Video taken during the minutes after the launch revealed that a piece of foam insulation came off Discovery's external fuel tank, although it apparently did not damage the shuttle. After the problem was discovered, NASA suspended all future launches until the problem is solved.
Discovery was set to return on August 7, 2005, but their mission was extended due to unfavorable weather conditions. The shuttle returned from orbit on August 9, 2005, landing in darkness at 8:12 AM EDT just before dawn at Edwards Air Force Base after travelling 5.8 million miles.
Discovery landed at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 10 AM, Monday, August 22. Discovery was flown from Edwards Air Force Base using one of NASA Boeing 747 Space Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. After landing Discovery was lifted off the back of the 747 and then towed to the nearby Orbiter Processing Facility marking the end of STS-114. Here Discovery will be emptied of its cargo from the International Space Station and will be readied for the next shuttle mission STS-121.
STS-121 mission (scheduled May 2006)
STS-121 is the second Return to Flight Testing after the Columbia accident in 2003. First space shuttle Atlantis was selected for this mission but after the external tank foam loss issues with STS-121 the launch has been delayed to March 2006 enabeling NASA to select Discovery for STS-121. STS-121 will also continue the demonstration of heat shield repair techniques. STS-121 will visit the International Space Station with additional supplies using the Italian built Leonardo multi purpose logistics module. With sufficient supplies ISS will be able to accommodate a third astronaut. German European Space Agency Astronaut Thomas Reiter will join NASA commander William McArthur and Russian Valeri Tokarev making the ISS truly international again.
Flights
Space Shuttle Discovery has flown 31 flights, spent 241.95 days in space, completed 3,808 orbits, and flown 98,710,673 miles (158,859,429 km) in total, as of July 2005.
Discovery is set for retirement in 2010.
Notable missions
- STS-41-D: First Flight
- STS-51-D: Carried first sitting United States congressman into space, Senator Jake Garn (R-UT)
- STS-26: Return to space after Challenger disaster (STS-51-L)
- STS-95: Second flight of John Glenn, oldest man in space
- STS-114: Return to space after Columbia disaster (STS-107)
| Date | Designation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 August 30 | STS-41-D | Launched two communications satellites, including LEASAT F2 |
| 1984 November 8 | STS-51-A | Launched two and rescued two communications satellites including LEASAT F1 |
| 1985 January 24 | STS-51-C | Launched DOD Magnum ELINT satellite |
| 1985 April 12 | STS-51-D | Launched two communications satellites including LEASAT F3 |
| 1985 June 17 | STS-51-G | Launched two communications satellites, Sultan Salman al-Saud becomes first Saudi Arabian in space |
| 1985 August 27 | STS-51-I | Launched two communications satellites including LEASAT F4. Recovered LEASAT F3 |
| 1988 September 29 | STS-26 | Return to flight, launched TDRS |
| 1989 March 13 | STS-29 | Launched TDRS |
| 1989 November 22 | STS-33 | Launched DOD Magnum ELINT satellite |
| 1990 April 24 | STS-31 | Launch of Hubble Space Telescope (HST) |
| 1990 October 6 | STS-41 | Launch of Ulysses |
| 1991 April 28 | STS-39 | Launched DOD Air Force Program-675 (AFP675) satellite |
| 1991 September 12 | STS-48 | Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) |
| 1992 January 22 | STS-42 | International Microgravity Laboratory-1 (IML-1) |
| 1992 December 2 | STS-53 | Department of Defense payload |
| 1993 April 8 | STS-56 | Atmospheric Laboratory (ATLAS-2) |
| 1993 September 12 | STS-51 | Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS) |
| 1994 February 3 | STS-60 | Wake Shield Facility (WSF) |
| 1994 September 9 | STS-64 | LIDAR In-Space Technology Experiment (LITE) |
| 1995 February 3 | STS-63 | Rendezvous with Mir space station |
| 1995 July 13 | STS-70 | 7th Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) |
| 1997 February 11 | STS-82 | Servicing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) |
| 1997 August 7 | STS-85 | Cryogenic Infrared Spectrometers and Telescopes |
| 1998 June 2 | STS-91 | Final Shuttle/Mir Docking Mission |
| 1998 October 29 | STS-95 | SPACEHAB, Second flight of John Glenn, Pedro Duque becomes first spaniard in space |
| 1999 May 27 | STS-96 | Resupply mission for the International Space Station |
| 1999 December 19 | STS-103 | Servicing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) |
| 2000 October 11 | STS-92 | International Space Station Assembly Flight |
| 2001 March 8 | STS-102 | International Space Station crew rotation flight |
| 2001 August 10 | STS-105 | International Space Station crew and supplies delivery |
| 2005 July 26 | STS-114 | Return to flight, International Space Station supplies delivery, new safety procedures testing and evaluation |
See also
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