 Guion Bluford, Reinhard Furrer, and Ernst Messerschmid in Spacelab Module LM2, serving as the Spacelab D1 laboratory. | |
| Names | Space Transportation System-22 Spacelab D-1 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Microgravity research |
| Operator | NASA, West Germany and ESA |
| COSPAR ID | 1985-104A |
| SATCAT no. | 16230 |
| Mission duration | 7 days, 44 minutes, 51 seconds |
| Distance travelled | 4,682,148 km (2,909,352 mi) |
| Orbits completed | 112 |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Space Shuttle Challenger |
| Launch mass | 110,568 kg (243,761 lb) |
| Landing mass | 97,144 kg (214,166 lb) |
| Payload mass | 14,451 kg (31,859 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 8 |
| Members | |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | October 30, 1985, 17:00:00 UTC (12:00 pm EST) |
| Launch site | Kennedy, LC-39A |
| Contractor | Rockwell International |
| End of mission | |
| Landing date | November 6, 1985, 17:44:51 UTC (9:44:51 am PST) |
| Landing site | Edwards, Runway 17 |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Perigee altitude | 319 km (198 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 331 km (206 mi) |
| Inclination | 57.00° |
| Period | 91.00 minutes |
 STS-61-A mission patch  Back: Nagel, Bluford, Messerschmid and Ockels Front: Furrer, Dunbar, Buchli and Hartsfield | |
STS-61-A (also known as Spacelab D-1) was the 22nd mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program. It was a scientific Spacelab mission, funded and directed by West Germany – hence the non-NASA designation of D-1 (for Deutschland-1). STS-61-A was the ninth and last successful flight of Space Shuttle Challenger before the disaster. STS-61-A holds the current record for the largest crew—eight people—aboard any single spacecraft for the entire period from launch to landing.
The mission carried the NASA/European Space Agency (ESA) Spacelab module into orbit with 76 scientific experiments on board, and was declared a success.[1] Payload operations were controlled from the German Space Operations Center in Oberpfaffenhofen, West Germany, instead of from the regular NASA control center.[2] This was the first spaceflight to include multiple crewmembers from any single country other than the United States or Soviet Union.
- ^ "German-run shuttle mission successful – Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. November 16, 1985. Retrieved May 18, 2011.
- ^ "STS-61A Space Shuttle Challenger Mission". Space.about.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved May 18, 2011.