Wikipedia / STS-68
Wikipedia / STS-68
STS-68 was a human spaceflight mission using that launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida on September 30, 1994.
Crew
Launch
Launch September 30, 1994, at 7:16:00.068am EDT from Kennedy Space Center Launch Pad 39-A. The Launch window opened at 7:16am EDT with a 2-hour-30-minute window. Orbiter mass at liftoff was 247,129 pounds (112,096kg) including payload. Total vehicle mass was . Payload liftoff mass . Main Engine Cutoff (MECO) was at an apogee of and a perigee of at MET of 8 min 35 s with Endeavour traveling at . No OMS-1 burn was required. OMS-2 burn was 1 min 42 s () at MET 33 min.
The launch was originally scheduled August 18, 1994, but there was an RSLS abort at Tâ1.9 s, after all three main engines ignited â the fifth (and final) time in the shuttle program where an RSLS abort occurred after main engine ignition. Previous aborts occurred on STS-41-D, STS-51-F, STS-55 and STS-51. The automatic abort was initiated by the onboard General Purpose Computers (GPC) when the discharge temperature on MPS Main Engine #3 High Pressure Oxidizer Turbopump (HPOT) exceeded its redline value. The HPOT typically operates at 28,120 rpm and boosts the liquid oxygen pressure from 422 to 4,300 psi (2.91 to 29.6MPa). There are 2 sensor channels measuring temperature on the HPOT. The B channel indicated a redline condition while the other was near redline conditions. The redline limit to initiate a shutdown is at 867K. This limit increases to 980K at (5.3s after Main Engine Start). Main Engine #3 (SN 2032) has been used on two previous flights with of hot-fire time and a total of eight starts. This was the first flight for the HPOT on Main Engine (SSME) #3. Mission specialist Dan Bursch became the only astronaut to experience two RSLS aborts, having previously experienced one on STS-51.
A new launch date was set for early October and then moved up to late September. The procedure that has been used on previous aborts treats an RSLS abort after SSME ignition as a launch and to require a complete engine reinspection. A rollback of Endeavour to the VAB was done on August 24, 1994. Afterwards, Endeavours SSMEs were removed and inspected. Three flight certified SSMEs (removed from the Atlantis STS-66 mission) were installed on the orbiter and Endeavour was rolled back to the launch pad on September 13, 1994. SSME #3 was shipped to the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi for test stand firing over the Labor day weekend (September 5, 1994). The engine was later flown on STS-70 in 1995.
Transatlantic Abort Landing (TAL) sites for the initial launch attempt were Zaragoza, Spain, Moron, Spain and Ben Guerir, Morocco. Abort Once Around landing site was White Sands Space Harbor, New Mexico, USA.
Landing
Landing October 11, 1994, 1:02:09pm EDT. Edwards Air Force Base concrete Runway 22. Endeavour did an OMS deorbit burn at 12:09pm EDT about from the landing strip at Edwards Air Force Base. The burn lasted 2 min 17 s which lowered Endeavour's velocity . Astronaut John Casper flew the shuttle training aircraft at Edwards and said the weather was clear with light winds. Approach was from the southwest with a right overhead turn of 280 degrees. Nose wheel touchdown at 13:02:21 EDT. Wheel stop at 13:03:08 EDT. Rollout was approximately down the runway. Landing speed at main touchdown was approximately . Orbiter landing mass was . Payload landing mass was .
Landing was originally scheduled for KSC, October 11, 1994, at 11:36am EDT. The KSC landing attempts on that date were waved off due to cloud cover over the Shuttle Landing Facility.
Crew seat assignments
Mission highlights
September 30, 1994 (Flight Day 1)
On Friday, September 30, 1994, at 9am CST, STS-68 MCC Status Report#1 reported:
On Friday, September 30, 1994, at 5pm CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#2 reported:
October 1, 1994 (Flight Day 2)
On Saturday, October 1, 1994, at 9am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#3 reported:
October 2, 1994 (Flight Day 3)
On Sunday, October 2, 1994, at 9am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#4 reported:
October 3, 1994 (Flight Day 4)
On Monday, October 3, 1994, at 10am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#5 reported:
On Monday, October 3, 1994, at 5pm CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#6 reported:
October 4, 1994 (Flight Day 5)
On Tuesday, October 4, 1994, at 9am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#7 reported:
On Tuesday, October 4, 1994, at 5pm CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#8 reported:
Also on October 4, Payload Commander Tom Jones discussed the significance of radar systems and the Earth's environment in an interview with ABC's Good Morning America. Mission Specialist Jeff Wisoff discussed the mission with CONUS Communications Syndicate affiliates WTKR-TV in his hometown of Norfolk, Va., and the All News Channel in Minneapolis.
October 5, 1994 (Flight Day 6)
On Wednesday, October 5, 1994, at 8am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#9 reported:
On Wednesday, October 5, 1994, at 4pm CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#10 reported:
October 6, 1994 (Flight Day 7)
On Thursday, October 6, 1994, at 8am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#11 reported:
On Thursday, October 6, 1994, at 5pm CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#12 reported:
October 7, 1994 (Flight Day 8)
On Friday, October 7, 1994, at 8am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#13 reported:
On Friday, October 7, 1994, at 5pm CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#14 reported:
October 8, 1994 (Flight Day 9)
On Saturday, October 8, 1994, at 5am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#15 reported:
October 9, 1994 (Flight Day 10)
On Sunday, October 9, 1994, at 9am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#16 reported:
October 10, 1994 (Flight Day 11)
On Monday, October 10, 1994, at 10am CDT, STS-68 MCC Status Report#16 reported:
See also
References
External links