STS-61-A

STS-61-A
Guion Bluford, Reinhard Furrer, and Ernst Messerschmid in Spacelab Module LM2, serving as the Spacelab D1 laboratory.
NamesSpace Transportation System-22
Spacelab D-1
Mission typeMicrogravity research
OperatorNASA, West Germany and ESA
COSPAR ID1985-104A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.16230Edit this on Wikidata
Mission duration7 days, 44 minutes, 51 seconds
Distance travelled4,682,148 km (2,909,352 mi)
Orbits completed112
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftSpace Shuttle Challenger
Launch mass110,568 kg (243,761 lb)
Landing mass97,144 kg (214,166 lb)
Payload mass14,451 kg (31,859 lb)
Crew
Crew size8
Members
Start of mission
Launch dateOctober 30, 1985, 17:00:00 (October 30, 1985, 17:00:00) UTC (12:00 pm EST)
Launch siteKennedy, LC-39A
ContractorRockwell International
End of mission
Landing dateNovember 6, 1985, 17:44:51 (November 6, 1985, 17:44:51) UTC (9:44:51 am PST)
Landing siteEdwards, Runway 17
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Perigee altitude319 km (198 mi)
Apogee altitude331 km (206 mi)
Inclination57.00°
Period91.00 minutes

STS-61-A mission patch

Back: Nagel, Bluford, Messerschmid and Ockels
Front: Furrer, Dunbar, Buchli and Hartsfield
← STS-51-J (21)
STS-61-B (23) →

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.

  1. ^ "German-run shuttle mission successful – Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. November 16, 1985. Retrieved May 18, 2011.
  2. ^ "STS-61A Space Shuttle Challenger Mission". Space.about.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved May 18, 2011.