STS-41

STS-41
Ulysses and its Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) in the payload bay of Discovery
NamesSpace Transportation System-41
Mission typeUlysses spacecraft deployment
OperatorNASA
COSPAR ID1990-090A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.20841Edit this on Wikidata
Mission duration4 days, 2 hours, 10 minutes, 4 seconds
Distance travelled2,747,866 km (1,707,445 mi)
Orbits completed66
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftSpace Shuttle Discovery
Launch mass117,749 kg (259,592 lb)
Landing mass89,298 kg (196,868 lb)
Payload mass15,362 kg (33,867 lb)
Crew
Crew size5
Members
Start of mission
Launch dateOctober 6, 1990, 11:47:15 (October 6, 1990, 11:47:15) UTC (7:47:15 am EDT)
Launch siteKennedy, LC-39B
ContractorRockwell International
End of mission
Landing dateOctober 10, 1990, 13:57:19 (October 10, 1990, 13:57:19) UTC (6:57:19 am PDT)
Landing siteEdwards, Runway 22
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Perigee altitude300 km (190 mi)
Apogee altitude307 km (191 mi)
Inclination28.45°
Period90.60 minutes
Instruments
  • Air Force Maui Optical Site (AMOS)
  • Chromosome and Plant Cell Division Experiment (CHROMEX)
  • INTELSAT Solar Array Coupon (ISAC)
  • Investigations into Polymer Membrane Processing (IPMP)
  • Physiological Systems Experiment (PSE)
  • Radiation Monitoring Experiment (RME III)
  • Shuttle Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SSBUV)
  • Solid Surface Combustion Experiment (SSCE)
  • Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSIP)
  • Voice Command System (VCS)

STS-41 mission patch

From left: Melnick, Cabana, Akers, Richards and Shepherd are pictured in front of the T-38 jet trainer
← STS-31 (35)
STS-38 (37) →

STS-41 was the 36th Space Shuttle mission and the eleventh mission of the Space Shuttle Discovery. The four-day mission had a primary objective of launching the Ulysses probe as part of the "International Solar Polar Mission" (ISPM).