STS-61C (STS-24)

Launch, orbit & landing data: Designation  16481 / 86003A Launch date - time  12 Jan 1986 - 11:55:00 UT Launch site  KSC, LC39A Launch vehicle  Space Shuttle Orbiter  Columbia OV-102 (#7) Primary payload  RCA SATCOM K-1 Mass (kg)   Flight Crew  Gibson, Bolden, Chang-Diaz, Hawley D.Nelson, Cenker, B.Nelson Call Sign   Earth orbit on :    - Perigee / Apogee  324 x 346 km    - Inclination  28.47°    - Period  91.05 min Landing date - time  18 Jan 1986 - 13:58:51 UT Landing location  Edwards AFB, Runway 22 Flight Duration  6d 02h 03m Nbr orbits  98 Distance traveled  4,069,480 km

Crew

Mission details:

Piece of thermal insulation tile floats near the Shuttle Columbia - Credit: NASA.

Manned seven crew. Launched Satcom K1. Payloads: Deploy SATCOM (RCA-Satellite Communi-cations) Ku-1 with Payload Assist Module (PAM)-D II. Materials Science Laboratory, Comet Halley Active Monitoring Experiment (CHAMP), Hitchhiker (HH) Goddard (G)-1, thirteen getaway specials (GAS), student experiment, Initial Blood Storage Equipment (lBSE), Characterization of Space Motion Sickness (SMS).

Representative Bill Nelson prepares to eat a peeled grapefruit - Credit: NASA.

Astronaut Charles Bolden in pilots station prior to entry - Credit: NASA.

Mission Name: 61-C (24)
COLUMBIA (7)
Pad 39-A (36)
24th Shuttle mission
RSLS Abort (3)
Extended mission
Diverted landing
2nd Night landing

Crew:
Robert L. Gibson (2), Commander
Charles F. Bolden (1), Jr., Pilot
Franklin R. Chang-Diaz (1), Mission Specialist 1
Steven A. Hawley (2), Mission Specialist 1
George D. Nelson (2), Mission Specialist 2
Robert J. Cenker (1), Payload Specialist 1
Congressman Bill Nelson (1), Payload Specialist 2

Astronaut Franklin Chang-Diaz checking payload bay through aft deck window - Credit: NASA.

Payload:
SATCOM-KU2,LEASAT-5,MSL-2,CHAMP,IR-IE,SSIP(x3),GAS(x13)
Mission Objectives:

Launch:
January 12, 1986, 6:55:00 a.m. EST. Launch set for Dec. 18, 1985 delayed one day when additional time needed to close out orbiter aft compartment. Launch attempt Dec. 19 scrubbed at T- 14 seconds due to indication that right solid rocket booster hydraulic power unit exceeding RPM redline speed limits. (Later determined as false reading.) After 18-day delay, launch attempt Jan. 6, 1986 halted at T-31 seconds due to accidental draining of approximately 4,000 pounds of liquid oxygen from external tank. Launch attempt Jan. 7 scrubbed at T-9 minutes due to bad weather at both transoceanic abort landing sites (Moron, Spain and Dakar, Senegal). After two-day delay, launch set for Jan. 9 delayed due to launch pad liquid oxygen sensor breaking off and lodging in number two main engine prevalve. Launch set for Jan. 10 delayed two days due to heavy rains. Launch countdown Jan. 12 proceeded with no delays. Launch Weight: 256,003 lbs.
Orbit:
Altitude: 212nm
Inclination: 28.5 degrees
Orbits: 98
Duration: Six days, two hours, three minutes, 51 seconds.
Distance: 2,528,658 miles

Four STS 61-C crewmembers gather at the commander′s station - Credit: NASA.

Landing:
January 18,1986, 5:58:51 a.m, PST, Runway 22, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Rollout distance: 10,202 feet. Rollout time: 59 seconds. Planned landing at KSC, originally scheduled for Jan. 17, moved to Jan. 16 to save orbiter turnaround time. Landing attempts on Jan. 16 and 17 abandoned due to unacceptable weather at KSC. Landing set for Jan. 18 at KSC but persisting bad weather forced a one revolution extension of mission and landing at Edwards. Orbiter returned to KSC Jan. 23, 1986. Landing Weight: 210,161 lbs.

The SATCOM Ku-1 commuications satellite deployed from Columbia - Credit: NASA.

Night landing of Shuttle Columbia at Edwards AFB and end of STS 61-C mission - Credit: NASA.

External links:

• AmericaSpace: Remembering Shuttle Columbia′s Brush With Disaster, 35 Years On