STS-51-B

{{Short description|1985 American crewed spaceflight}} {{Use American English|date=January 2022}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2022}} {{Infobox spaceflight | name = STS-51-B | names_list = Space Transportation System-17 Spacelab 3 | image = STS-51-B crew in Spacelab.jpg | image_caption = Overmyer, Lind, Van den Berg, and Thornton in Spacelab Module LM1 during flight | mission_type = Microgravity research | operator = NASA | mission_duration = {{time interval|April 29, 1985, 16:02:18|May 6, 1985, 16:11:04|show=dhms|sep=,}} | distance_travelled = {{cvt|4651621|km}} | orbits_completed = 111 | spacecraft = {{OV|099}} | launch_mass = {{cvt|111980|kg}} | landing_mass = {{cvt|96373|kg}} | payload_mass = {{cvt|15610|kg}} | crew_size = 7 | crew_members = {{Unbulleted list|Robert F. Overmyer|Frederick D. Gregory|Don L. Lind|Norman E. Thagard|William E. Thornton|Lodewijk van den Berg|Taylor G. Wang}} | launch_date = {{Start date text|April 29, 1985, 16:02:18|timezone=yes}}{{nbsp}}UTC (12:02:18{{nbsp}}pm{{nbsp}}EDT) | launch_site = Kennedy, LC-39A | launch_contractor = Rockwell International | landing_date = {{End date text|May 6, 1985, 16:11:04|timezone=yes}}{{nbsp}}UTC (9:11:04{{nbsp}}am{{nbsp}}PDT) | landing_site = Edwards, Runway{{nbsp}}17 | orbit_reference = Geocentric orbit | orbit_regime = Low Earth orbit | orbit_periapsis = {{cvt|346|km}} | orbit_apoapsis = {{cvt|352|km}} | orbit_inclination = 57.00° | orbit_period = 91.50 minutes | apsis = gee | instruments = | insignia = Sts-51-b-patch.png | insignia_caption = STS 51-B mission patch | crew_photo = STS-51-B_crew.jpg | crew_photo_caption = Standing: Lind, Wang, Thagard, Thornton and Van den Berg Sitting: Overmyer and Gregory | programme = Space Shuttle program | previous_mission = STS-51-D (16) | next_mission = STS-51-G (18) }}

thumb|Launch of STS-51-B

'''STS-51-B''' was the 17th flight of the NASA Space Shuttle program and the seventh flight of Space Shuttle ''Challenger''. The launch of ''Challenger'' on April 29, 1985, was delayed by 2 minutes and 18 seconds, due to a launch processing failure. ''Challenger'' was initially rolled out to the pad to launch on the STS-51-E mission. The shuttle was rolled back when a timing issue emerged with the TDRS-B satellite. When STS-51-E was canceled, ''Challenger'' was remanifested with the STS-51-B payloads. The shuttle landed successfully on May 6, 1985, after a week-long mission.

== Crew == {{Spaceflight crew | terminology = Astronaut

| position1 = Commander | crew1_up = Robert F. Overmyer 8px|Member of Gold Team | flights1_up = Second and last

| position2 = Pilot | crew2_up = Frederick D. Gregory 8px|Member of Silver Team | flights2_up = First

| position3 = Mission Specialist 1 | crew3_up = Don L. Lind 8px|Member of Gold Team | flights3_up = Only

| position4 = Mission Specialist 2 Flight Engineer | crew4_up = Norman E. Thagard 8px|Member of Silver Team | flights4_up = Second

| position5 = Mission Specialist 3 | crew5_up = William E. Thornton 8px|Member of Gold Team | flights5_up = Second and last

| position7 = Payload Specialist 2 | crew7_up = Taylor G. Wang 8px|Member of Gold Team | flights7_up = Only | details7_up = Jet Propulsion Laboratory | notes = 8px|Member of Gold Team Member of Gold Team 8px|Member of Silver Team Member of Silver Team }} {{Spaceflight crew | terminology = Astronaut | crew = backup

| position6 = Payload Specialist 1 | crew6_up = Mary Helen Johnston 8px|Member of Silver Team

| position7 = Payload Specialist 2 | crew7_up = Eugene H. Trinh 8px|Member of Gold Team }}

=== Crew seat assignments === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! Seat<ref>{{cite web|title=STS-51B|url=http://spacefacts.de/mission/english/sts-51b.htm|publisher=Spacefacts|access-date=February 26, 2014}}</ref> ! Launch ! Landing |rowspan=8| 150px Seats 1–4 are on the flight deck. Seats 5–7 are on the mid-deck. |- ! 1 |colspan=2| Overmyer |- ! 2 |colspan=2| Gregory |- ! 3 |colspan=2| Lind |- ! 4 |colspan=2| Thagard |- ! 5 |colspan=2| Thornton |- ! 6 |colspan=2| van den Berg |- ! 7 |colspan=2| Wang |}

== Mission insignia == The mission insignia features the ''Challenger'' with her payload doors open, to show the onboard Spacelab 3. The orbiter rides over the American flag. The seven crewmembers are represented by the 7 stars on the patch, that indirectly refer to the Mercury Seven as a nod to their legacy. Behind the orbiter, the contours of Pegasus can be seen, as a reference to the European Space Agency (ESA). The white board surrounding it all has the appearance of a space suit helmet, with the names of the two respective teams grouped around them on a round band encircling the insignia, and the two mission specialists on an added section below. To further create some sort of contrast, the team colors are reprised for each member's name.

== Mission summary == thumb|upright=1.0|left|Overmyer using a treadmill on ''Challenger's'' middeck.

''Challenger'' lifted off from Kennedy Space Center (KSC)'s launch pad 39A at 12:02:18 p.m. EDT on April 29, 1985. The crew members included Robert F. Overmyer, commander; Frederick D. Gregory, pilot; Don L. Lind, Norman E. Thagard and William E. Thornton, mission specialists; and Lodewijk van den Berg, of EG&G Energy Management, Inc., and Taylor G. Wang, of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), both payload specialists.<ref name="NTRS">{{cite conference |author1=Fichtl |first=George H. |author2=Theon |first2=John S. |author3=Hill |first3=Charles K. |author4=Vaughan |first4=Otha H. |date=February 1987 |title=Spacelab 3 Mission Science Review |conference= |publisher=Marshall Space Flight Center |via=NASA Technical Reports Server |hdl-access=free |book-title=Proceedings of a symposium held at NASA George C. Marshall Space Flight Center Marshall Space Flight Center, Alabama December 4, 1985 |hdl=2060/19870012670}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> Average age of 48.6 was the oldest for an American space mission.<ref name="kennedy19850429">{{cite news|last=Kennedy|first=J. Michael|date=April 29, 1985|title=Shuttle Flight Is Lind's First Mission: Astronaut's 19-Year Wait for Space Trip Ends Today|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-04-29-mn-12831-story.html|access-date=July 7, 2020}}</ref> Similar to the previous Spacelab mission (STS-9), the crew was divided roughly in half to cover 12-hour shifts, with Overmyer, Lind, Thornton and Wang forming the Gold team, and Gregory, Thagard and Van den Berg as the Silver team.

STS-51-B was the second flight of the European Space Agency (ESA)'s Spacelab pressurized module, and the first with the Spacelab module in a fully operational configuration. Spacelab's capabilities for multi-disciplinary research in microgravity were successfully demonstrated. The gravity gradient attitude of the orbiter proved quite stable, allowing the delicate experiments in materials processing and fluid mechanics to proceed normally. The crew operated around the clock in two 12-hour shifts. Two squirrel monkeys and 24 rats were flown in special cages,<ref>[http://lis.arc.nasa.gov/lis/Programs/STS/STS_51B/STS_51B.html Programs, Missions, and Payloads STS-51B/Spacelab 3] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719061203/http://lis.arc.nasa.gov/lis/Programs/STS/STS_51B/STS_51B.html|date=July 19, 2011}}, NASA {{PD-notice}}</ref> the second time American astronauts flew live non-human mammals aboard the shuttle. The crew members in orbit were supported 24 hours a day by a temporary Payload Operations Control Center, located at the Johnson Space Center.

An experiment designed by Taylor Wang malfunctioned upon activation. Wang, feeling immense pressure, received permission to attempt a fix and was successful in repairing the experiment, though remarks made by him caused concern for the safety of the crew and the mission.<ref name="ars">{{cite web |last=Berger |first=Eric |url=https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/01/solving-a-nasa-mystery-why-did-space-shuttle-commanders-lock-the-hatch/ |title=What happens when an astronaut in orbit says he's not coming back? |work=Ars Technica |date=2024-01-22 |access-date=2024-01-23}}</ref> The incident was covered in an ''Ars Technica'' article on 22 January 2024. There, John Fabian, mission specialist on STS-51-G, the very next shuttle flight after 51-B, was cited to explain why a lock was recently installed on the door of the side hatch: "It was installed when we got into orbit so that the door could not be opened from the inside and commit ''hara-kiri'', kill the whole crew. That was not because of anybody we had on our flight but because of a concern about someone who had flown before 51-G."<ref name="ars"/>

On the mission, Spacelab carried 15 primary experiments, of which 14 were successfully performed. Two Getaway Special (GAS) experiments required that they be deployed from their canisters, a first for the program. These were NUSAT (Northern Utah Satellite) and GLOMR (Global Low Orbiting Message Relay satellite). NUSAT deployed successfully, but GLOMR did not deploy, and was returned to Earth.

A Cosmic Ray Experiment by Indian Space Research Organisation, named Anuradha was launched onboard the mission. It measured the ionization states of low energy cosmic rays in near-earth space. It consisted of a Barrel shaped recorder consisting of plastic sheets. It detected cosmic rays at the rate of seven a minute for 64 hours and produced 10000 sheets of data

''Challenger'' landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base at 12:11:04 p.m. EDT on May 6, 1985, after a mission lasting 7 days, 8 minutes, and 46 seconds.

== Connection to the ''Challenger'' disaster == While participating in the investigation into the destruction of ''Challenger'' during STS-51L in 1986, Overmyer discovered that a problem with the shuttle's O-rings, similar to that which led to the disaster, had emerged during the launch of STS-51B. Morton-Thiokol engineers told Lind after the mission that "you came within three-tenths of one second of dying".<ref name="lindoh">{{cite web|url=https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/oral_histories/LindDL/LindDL_5-27-05.htm|work=Don L. Lind oral history transcript|title=NASA Johnson Space Center Oral History Project|date=May 27, 2005}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> It was the problem with the O-rings on the left solid rocket motor (SRM) on this launch (SRM-16A) that prompted Roger Boisjoly to write a memo to Bob Lund about the potential for the O-rings to cause catastrophic failure.<ref>See {{cite web|url=https://history.nasa.gov/rogersrep/v5part6a.htm|volume=5|title=Report of the Presidential Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

== Popular Culture == The Simpsons season 5 episode Deep Space Homer saw NASA "improve" its ratings by sending an everyman into space. That everyman was Homer Simpson who rode in a space plane with Buzz Aldrin and Race Banyon. While in flight, Homer did the following: * He opened a bag of chips which he smuggled aboard and proceeded to eat them while floating around. * While trying to eat the bag of chips, Homer crashed into an ant experiment which unleashed ants who floated around and destroyed the navigation system. * The advice from singer James Taylor is to open the hatch and let the ants fly out, however Homer forgets his harness and bends the latch while trying to hold on which prevents the hatch from fully closing. * While fighting with a furious Race Banyon, Homer ends up using a carbon rod to secure the hatch. ** The events with the hatch in this episode mirror the events on this Shuttle flight.

== See also == {{Portal|Spaceflight}} * List of human spaceflights * List of Space Shuttle missions

== References == {{Reflist}}

== Further reading == *{{Cite news |last=Berger |first=Eric |date=2024-01-22 |title=What happens when an astronaut in orbit says he's not coming back? |url=https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/01/solving-a-nasa-mystery-why-did-space-shuttle-commanders-lock-the-hatch/ |access-date=2024-01-23 |website=Ars Technica}}

== External links == {{Commons category}} * [http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/51-b/mission-51-b.html NASA mission summary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130215152856/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/51-b/mission-51-b.html |date=February 15, 2013 }} * [http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle17.htm STS-51B Video Highlights] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921054934/http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle17.htm |date=September 21, 2013 }}

Category:Space Shuttle missions Category:Edwards Air Force Base Category:1985 in the United States Category:1985 in spaceflight Category:Spacecraft launched in 1985 Category:Spacecraft which reentered in 1985