Columbia also carried a large number of small scientific experiments, including 13 Getaway Special (GAS) canisters devoted to investigations involving the effect of microgravity on materials processing, seed germination, chemical reactions, egg hatching, astronomy, atmospheric physics, and an experiment designed by Ellery Kurtz and Howard Wishnow to determine the effects of the space environment on fine arts materials and original oil paintings, flying four of Kurtz's paintings into space. The primary objective of the mission was to deploy the Satcom-K1 communications satellite, second in a planned series of geosynchronous satellites owned and operated by RCA Americom the deployment was successful. There were no significant anomalies reported during the launch. Mission summary STS-61-C landingĪfter four unsuccessful launch attempts, Columbia launched successfully from Kennedy Space Center at 6:55:00 a.m. Another attempt was made on January 7, 1986, but was scrubbed because of bad weather at contingency landing sites at Dakar, Senegal, and Morón de la Frontera, Spain yet another attempt, on January 9, 1986, was delayed because of a problem with a main engine prevalve, and on January 10, 1986, heavy rainfall in the launch area led to another scrub. The countdown was recycled to T-20 minutes for a second launch attempt on the same day, but was held at T-9 minutes, and then scrubbed as the launch window expired. Another launch attempt, on January 6, 1986, was terminated at T-31 seconds because of a problem in a valve in the liquid oxygen system. However, on December 19, 1985, the countdown was stopped at T-14 seconds due to an out-of-tolerance turbine reading on the right SRB's hydraulic system. The launch was originally scheduled for December 18, 1985, but the closeout of an aft orbiter compartment was delayed, and the mission was rescheduled for the following day. The bulky ejection seats, which had been disabled after STS-4, were replaced with conventional seats and head-up displays for the commander and pilot were installed. Smaller and more discreet modifications were also added at various points throughout the shuttle. The camera was only used for a few more missions after STS-61-C, but the pod remained on Columbia for the remainder of its operational life. Most notable of these modifications was the addition of the SILTS (Shuttle Infrared Leeside Temperature Sensing) pod atop Columbia's vertical stabilizer, which used an infrared camera to observe reentry heating on the shuttle's left wing and part of its fuselage. STS-61-C saw Columbia return to flight for the first time since the STS-9 mission in November 1983, after having undergone major modifications over the course of 18 months by Rockwell International in California. It was the last shuttle mission before the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, which occurred ten days after STS-61-C's landing.Ĭrew seating arrangements Seat STS-61-C's seven-person crew included the first Costa Rican-born astronaut, Franklin Chang-Díaz, and 2 future Administrators of NASA: the second African-American shuttle pilot, Charles Bolden, and the second sitting politician to fly in space, Representative Bill Nelson ( D-FL). The mission launched from Florida's Kennedy Space Center on January 12, 1986, and landed six days later on January 18, 1986. It was the first time that Columbia, the first space-rated Space Shuttle orbiter to be constructed, had flown since STS-9. STS-61-C was the 24th mission of NASA's Space Shuttle program, and the seventh mission of Space Shuttle Columbia.
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