STS-8

USA

Manned Flight n°: 93

Earth orbit Flight n°: 90

USA manned Flight n°: 39

Launch, orbit & landing data:

Designation	14312 / 83089A
Launch date - time	30 Aug 1983 - 06:32:00 UT
Launch site	KSC, LC39A
Launch vehicle	Space Shuttle (#8)
Orbiter	Challenger OV-099 (#3)
Primary payload	INSAT 1B
Mass (kg)
Earth orbit on :
- Perigee / Apogee	306 / 313 km
- Inclination	28.5°
- Period	90.7 min
Landing date - time	05 Sep 1983 - 07:40:43 UT
Landing location	Edwards AFB, Runway 22
Flight Duration (d:hr:min)	6d 01h 08m
Nbr orbits	98

First night landing

Flight Crew

Nr.	Surname	Given name	Job	Duration
1	Truly	Richard Harrison	CDR	6d 01h 08m
2	Brandenstein	Daniel Charles	PLT	6d 01h 08m
3	Gardner	Dale Alan	MSP	6d 01h 08m
4	Bluford	Guion Stewart, Jr.	MSP	6d 01h 08m
5	Thornton	William Edgar	MSP	6d 01h 08m

Mission details:

Launch from Cape Canaveral (KSC); landing on Edwards AFB; deploying of communications satellite Insat-1B (India); electrophoresis-experiments; investigations on "Space Adaption Syndrome"; biofeedback experiments with six rats; first night landing of a Space Shuttle; first night launch and first night landing of a Space Shuttle.

Payload: Challenger F03 / PFTA. Mass: 13,642 kg.

STS-8 - Crew compartment flight deck window debris, damage, streak documentation - Credit: NASA.

First night launch and night landing. Deployed Insat 1B. Payloads: Deployment of INSAT (lndia communica-tion satellite) with Payload Assist Module (PAM)-D, Payload Flight Test Article (PFTA)/ Payload Deployment Retrieval System (PDRS), Continuous Flow Electrophoresis (CFES), biomedical experiments. 250,000 express mail envelopes with special cachet for U.S. Postal Service were carried for a first-day cover.

STS-8 - Mission Specialist (MS) Bluford exercises on middeck treadmill - Credit: NASA.

Orbits of Earth: 97. Distance traveled: 4,046,660 km. Orbiter Liftoff Mass: 110,105 kg. Orbiter Mass at Landing: 92,506 kg. Payload to Orbit: 13,642 kg. Payload Returned: 10,265 kg. Landed at: Concrete runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base, Cali. Landing Speed: 361 kph. Touchdown miss distance: 851 m. Landing Rollout: 2,856 m.

STS-8 - Aft flight deck documentation with freefloating headset interface unit (HIU) - Credit: NASA.

NASA Official Mission Narrative

Mission Name: STS-8 (8)
CHALLENGER (3)
Pad 39-A (20)
8th Shuttle mission
3rd Flight OV-099
1st Night Launch
1st Night Landing

Crew:
Richard H. Truly (2), Commander
Daniel C. Brandenstein (1), Pilot
Dale A. Gardner (1), Mission Specialist
Guion S. Bluford (1), Jr., Mission Specialist
William E. Thornton (1), Mission Specialist

STS-8 - ISAL experiment documentation of vertical tail and OMS pods - Credit: NASA. 31,332 bytes. 608 x 608 pixels.

Milestones:
OPF - June 3O, 1983
VAB - July 26, 1983
PAD - Aug. 2, 1983

Payload:
INSAT-1B,PDRS/PFTA,CFES(4),OIM,MLR(3),GAS(x7)
Mission Objectives:

Launch:
August 30, 1983, 2:32:00 a.m. EDT. Launch delayed 17 mlnutes due to weather. Launch Weight: 242,742 lbs.
Orbit:
Altitude: 191nm
Inclination: 28.5 degrees
Orbits: 98
Duration: Six days, one hour, eight minutes, 43 seconds.
Distance: 2,514,478 miles

STS-8 - Close up view of the PFTA being lifted out of the payload bay - Credit: NASA. 41,710 bytes. 479 x 479 pixels.

Hardware:
SRB: BI-008
SRM: 008LW(HPM)
ET : 9/LWT-2
MLP : 2
SSME-1: SN-2017
SSME-2: SN-2015
SSME-3: SN-2012

Landing:
September 5,1983, 12:40:43 a.m. PDT, Runway 22, Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Rollout distance: 9,371 feet. Rollout time: 50 seconds. Orbiter returned to KSC Sept. 9, 1983. Landing Weight 203,945 lbs

STS-8 - View of the INSAT/PAM-D being deployed - Credit: NASA.

Mission Highlights:
Bluford became first African-American to fly in space. INSAT-1B, a multipurpose satellite for India attached to Payload Assist Module-D (PAM-D) motor, was deployed. Nose of orbiter held away from sun 14 hours to test flight deck area in extreme cold. For Development Flight Instrumentation Pallet (DFI PLT), crew filmed performance of experimental heat pipe mounted in cargo bay; also, orbiter dropped to 139 miles altitude to perform tests on thin atomic oxygen to identify cause of glow that surrounds parts of orbiter at night. Remote manipulator system tested to evaluate joint reactions to higher loads. Biofeedback experiments: six rats flown in Animal Enclosure Module to observe animal reactions in space. Other payloads: Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System (CFES); Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSlP) experiment; Incubator-Cell Attachment Test (l CAT); Investigation of STS Atmospheric Luminosities (ISAL); Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME); and five Get Away Special experiment packages including eight cans of postal covers. Testing conducted between Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I (TDRS-1 ) and orbiter using Ku-band antenna, and investigations continued on Space Adaptation Syndrome.

Ref.: #1, #7, #8, #16 - update: 21.02.05

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