STS-40

STS-40
Spacelab Module LM1 in Columbia's payload bay, serving as the Spacelab Life Sciences laboratory
NamesSpace Transportation System-40
Mission typeSpacelab Life Sciences-1 (SLS-1)
OperatorNASA
COSPAR ID1991-040A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.21399Edit this on Wikidata
Mission duration9 days, 2 hours, 14 minutes, 20 seconds
Distance travelled6,083,223 km (3,779,940 mi)
Orbits completed146
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftSpace Shuttle Columbia
Launch mass114,290 kg (251,970 lb)
Landing mass102,283 kg (225,495 lb)
Payload mass12,374 kg (27,280 lb)
Crew
Crew size7
Members
Start of mission
Launch dateJune 5, 1991, 13:24:51 (June 5, 1991, 13:24:51) UTC (9:24:51 am EDT)
Launch siteKennedy, LC-39B
ContractorRockwell International
End of mission
Landing dateJune 14, 1991, 15:39:11 (June 14, 1991, 15:39:11) UTC (8:39:11 am PDT)
Landing siteEdwards, Runway 22
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Perigee altitude287 km (178 mi)
Apogee altitude296 km (184 mi)
Inclination39.02°
Period90.40 minutes
Instruments
  • Getaway Special (GAS) canisters
  • Middeck Zero-Gravity Dynamics Experiment (MODE)

STS-40 mission patch

Back row: O'Connor, Jernigan and Gutierrez
Front row: Gaffney, Hughes-Fulford, Seddon and Bagian
← STS-39 (40)
STS-43 (42) →

STS-40, the eleventh launch of Space Shuttle Columbia, was a nine-day mission in June 1991. It carried the Spacelab module for Spacelab Life Sciences 1 (SLS-1), the fifth Spacelab mission and the first dedicated solely to biology. STS-40 was the first spaceflight that included three women crew members.[1]

  1. ^ Jones, Caleb. "Space Shuttle Columbia / OV-102 | STS-40". Space Launch Now. Retrieved April 29, 2024.