View source for STS-29

{{Short description|1989 American crewed spaceflight to deploy TDRS-4}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2014}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox spaceflight
| name               = STS-29
| names_list         = [[Space Transportation System]]-29<br/>STS-29R
| image              = Earth through the bay door2.jpg
| image_caption      = [[TDRS-4|TDRS-D]] being deployed on Flight Day 1 of the mission.
| mission_type       = [[TDRS-4|TDRS-D deployment]]
| operator           = [[NASA]]
| mission_duration   = {{time interval|March 13, 1989, 14:57:00|March 18, 1989, 14:35:50|show=dhms|sep=,}}
| distance_travelled = {{cvt|3200000|km}}
| orbits_completed   = 80
| spacecraft         = {{OV|103}}
| launch_mass        = {{cvt|116281|kg}}
| landing_mass       = {{cvt|88353|kg}}
| payload_mass       = {{cvt|17280|kg}}
| crew_size          = 5
| crew_members       = {{Unbulleted list|[[Michael Coats]]|[[John E. Blaha]]|[[Robert C. Springer]]|[[James Buchli]]|[[James P. Bagian]]}}
| launch_date        = {{Start date|March 13, 1989, 14:57:00|timezone=yes}}{{nbsp}}[[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]] (9:57{{nbsp}}am{{nbsp}}[[Eastern Standard Time|EST]])
| launch_site        = [[Kennedy Space Center|Kennedy]], [[Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39B|LC-39B]]
| launch_contractor  = [[Rockwell International]]
| landing_date       = {{End date|March 18, 1989, 14:35:50|timezone=yes}}{{nbsp}}UTC (6:35:50{{nbsp}}am{{nbsp}}[[Pacific Standard Time|PST]])
| landing_site       = [[Edwards Air Force Base|Edwards]], Runway{{nbsp}}22
| orbit_reference    = [[Geocentric orbit]]
| orbit_regime       = [[Low Earth orbit]]
| orbit_periapsis    = {{cvt|297|km}}
| orbit_apoapsis     = {{cvt|308|km}}
| orbit_inclination  = 28.45°
| orbit_period       = 90.60 minutes
| apsis              = gee
| instruments        = {{ubl|[[Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing observatory]] (AMOS)|Chromosomes and Plant Cell Division in Space (CHROMEX)|Protein Crystal Growth (PCG)|Space Station Heat Pipe Advanced Radiator Element (SHARE)|Two Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSIP)}}
| insignia           = Sts-29-patch.png
| insignia_caption   = STS-29 mission patch
| crew_photo         = STS-29_crew.jpg
| crew_photo_caption = Back row: [[James P. Bagian|Bagian]], [[Robert C. Springer|Springer]] and [[James Buchli|Buchli]]<br/>Front row: [[John E. Blaha|Blaha]] and [[Michael Coats|Coats]]
| programme          = [[Space Shuttle program]]
| previous_mission   = [[STS-27]]
| next_mission       = [[STS-30]] (29)
}}
'''STS-29''' was the 28th [[NASA]] [[Space Shuttle]] mission, during which [[Space Shuttle Discovery|Space Shuttle ''Discovery'']] inserted a [[U.S. tracking and data relay satellite|Tracking and Data Relay Satellite]] (TDRS) into [[Earth]] orbit.<ref name="STS-29 Press Kit">{{cite web|title=STS-29 Press Kit|url=https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/shuttle_pk/pk/Flight_028_STS-029R_Press_Kit.pdf|publisher=NASA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106130250/https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/shuttle_pk/pk/Flight_028_STS-029R_Press_Kit.pdf|archive-date=January 6, 2021|date=March 1989|url-status=live}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> It was the third shuttle mission following the [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|''Challenger'' disaster]] in 1986, and launched from [[Kennedy Space Center]], [[Florida]], on March 13, 1989.<ref name="LATimes 1989-03-14">{{cite news|last1=Dye|first1=Lee|title=Space Shuttle Launched, Puts Satellite in Orbit|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|url-status=live|date=March 14, 1989|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-03-14-mn-650-story.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106132036/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-03-14-mn-650-story.html|archive-date=January 6, 2021}}</ref> '''STS-29R''' was the eighth flight of ''Discovery'' and the 28th Space Shuttle mission overall; its planned predecessor, [[STS-28]], was delayed until August 1989.
The mission was technically designated '''STS-29R''' as the original STS-29 designator belonged to [[STS-61-A]], the 22nd Space Shuttle mission. Official documentation and paperwork for that mission contained the designator STS-29 when it was allocated to Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' and later as STS-30 when allocated to ''Challenger''. As [[STS-51-L]] was designated STS-33, future flights with the [[STS-26]] through [[STS-33]] designators would require the '''R''' in their documentation to avoid conflicts in tracking data from one mission to another.
== Crew ==
{{Spaceflight crew
| terminology = Astronaut
| position1   = Commander
| crew1_up    = [[Michael Coats]]
| flights1_up = Second
| position2   = Pilot
| crew2_up    = [[John E. Blaha]]
| flights2_up = First
| position3   = Mission Specialist 1
| crew3_up    = [[Robert C. Springer]]
| flights3_up = First
| position4   = Mission Specialist 2<br>Flight Engineer
| crew4_up    = [[James Buchli]]
| flights4_up = Third
| position5   = Mission Specialist 3
| crew5_up    = [[James P. Bagian]]
| flights5_up = First
}}
=== Crew seat assignments ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! Seat<ref name="Spacefacts STS-29">{{cite web|last1=Becker|first1=Joachim|title=Spaceflight mission report: STS-29|url=http://spacefacts.de/mission/english/sts-29.htm|publisher=SPACEFACTS|access-date=February 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217202822/http://www.spacefacts.de/mission/english/sts-29.htm|archive-date=February 17, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref>
! Launch
! Landing
|rowspan=8| [[File:Space Shuttle seating plan.svg|150px]]<br />Seats 1–4 are on the flight deck.<br />Seats 5–7 are on the mid-deck.
|-
! 1
|colspan=2| Coats
|-
! 2
|colspan=2| Blaha
|-
! 3
| Springer
| Bagian
|-
! 4
|colspan=2| Buchli
|-
! 5
| Bagian
| Springer
|-
! 6
|colspan=2 style="background-color:lightgray"| ''Unused''
|-
! 7
|colspan=2 style="background-color:lightgray"| ''Unused''
|}
== Mission summary ==
''Discovery'' lifted off from [[Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39B|Launch Complex 39B]], Kennedy Space Center, at 9:57:00 a.m. [[Eastern Time Zone|EST]] on March 13, 1989.<ref name="Chen 2012">{{cite book |last1=Chen|first1=Adam|title=Celebrating 30 Years of the Space Shuttle|publisher=NASA|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=978-0-16-090202-4|page=63|url=https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/656773main_ShuttleRetrospectiveBook-ebook.pdf|url-status=live|date=2012|access-date=January 6, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106150957/https://www.nasa.gov/pdf/656773main_ShuttleRetrospectiveBook-ebook.pdf|archive-date=January 6, 2021}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> The launch was originally scheduled for February 18, 1989, but was postponed to allow for the replacement of faulty [[liquid oxygen]] turbopumps on the three main engines. The amended target date of March 11, 1989, was postponed by 1 day, because of the failure of a master event controller (MEC); #2 when it was powered up during prelaunch checkout,<ref name="STIsummary">{{cite web|last1=Legler |first1=Robert D.|last2=Floyd V.|first2=Bennett|title=Space Shuttle Missions Summary|url=https://spaceflight.nasa.gov/outreach/SignificantIncidents/assets/space-shuttle-missions-summary.pdf|work=Scientific and Technical Information (STI) Program Office|publisher=NASA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200512003324/https://spaceflight.nasa.gov/outreach/SignificantIncidents/assets/space-shuttle-missions-summary.pdf|archive-date=May 12, 2020|pages=2-30–2-31|date=September 2011|url-status=dead}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> as well as an additional day to replace a faulty fuel preburner oxidizer valve (FPOV).<ref name="STIsummary"/> On the rescheduled launch day of March 13, 1989, the launch was delayed for nearly two hours because of ground fog and high upper winds.<ref name="STIsummary"/> A waiver was approved for the orbiter's wing loads.
The primary payload was [[TDRS-4|TDRS-D]], the third and final component of the [[Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System]] (TDRSS) constellation in [[geosynchronous orbit]].<ref name="STS-29 Press Kit"/> The three on-orbit satellites were stationed over the [[equator]] at about {{cvt|35900|km}} above Earth; two of them were positioned 130° apart, while the third was located between them as an on-orbit spare.
On Flight Day 1, one of three cryogenic hydrogen tanks which supplied shuttle's electricity-generating fuel cells exhibited erratic pressure fluctuations. It was deactivated while engineers studied the problem, and the crew was told to conserve electrical power. The tank was reactivated on Flight Day 3, March 15, 1989, and operated successfully thereafter.<ref name="MSER STS-29">{{cite web|author1=Office of Safety, Reliability, Maintainability and Quality Assurance|title=Misson Safety Evaluation Report for STS-29 - Postflight Edition|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19920013998/downloads/19920013998.pdf#page=71 |publisher=NASA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106183632/https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19920013998/downloads/19920013998.pdf|archive-date=January 6, 2021|location=Washington, D.C.|page=A-9 |date=May 8, 1989|url-status=live}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
''Discovery'' landed on March 18, 1989, after orbit 80, one orbit earlier than planned, in order to avoid possible excessive wind buildup expected at the landing site. The shuttle touched down on Runway 22 at [[Edwards Air Force Base]], [[California]], at 9:35:51 a.m. EST. The total mission duration was 4 days, 23 hours, 38 minutes, and 52 seconds.<ref name="STIsummary"/>
=== Payload and experiments ===
[[Image:TDRS horizon.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|left|[[TDRS-4]] after deployment]]
The mission's primary payload was TDRS-D,<ref name="STIsummary"/> which became TDRS-4 after deployment, and its attached [[Inertial Upper Stage]] (IUS). The satellite was deployed from the shuttle's payload bay less than six hours after launch, at 3:12 a.m. EST. The first-stage orbit burn of the IUS took place an hour later, and the second burn to circularize the orbit occurred 12 hours and 30 minutes into the mission. The satellite was stationed at 41.0° West [[longitude]].
''Discovery'' also carried eight [[Secondary payload|secondary payloads]], including two Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSIP) experiments. One student experiment, using four live [[rat]]s with tiny pieces of bone removed from their bodies, was to test whether the environmental effects of space flight inhibit bone healing. The other student experiment was to fly 32 [[chicken]] [[egg (food)|eggs]] to determine the effects of space flight on fertilized chicken [[embryo]]s.<ref name="Brown 1990">{{cite journal|title=NASA's Educational Programs|journal=Government Information Quarterly|year=1990|last=Brown|first=Robert W. |volume=7|issue=2|pages=185–195|issn=0740-624X|doi=10.1016/0740-624X(90)90054-R|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19900019131/downloads/19900019131.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106181752/https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19900019131/downloads/19900019131.pdf|archive-date=January 6, 2021|url-status=live|hdl=2060/19900019131|hdl-access=free}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
One experiment, mounted in the payload bay, was only termed "partially successful". The Space Station Heat Pipe Advanced Radiator Element (SHARE), a potential cooling system for the planned [[Space Station Freedom|Space Station ''Freedom'']], operated continuously for less than 30 minutes under powered electrical loads. The failure was blamed on the faulty design of the equipment, especially the manifold section.<ref name="AIAA Share Paper">{{citation|last1=Kosson|first1=Robert|last2=Brown|first2=Richard|last3=Ungar|first3=Eugene|contribution=Space Station heat pipe advanced radiator element (SHARE) flight test results and analysis|title=28th Aerospace Sciences Meeting|publisher=American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics|place=Reston, Virginia|date=January 11, 1990|doi=10.2514/6.1990-59|contribution-url=https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/6.1990-59|access-date=January 6, 2021}}</ref>
All other experiments operated successfully. [[Crystal]]s were obtained from all the [[protein]]s in the Protein Crystal Growth (PCG) experiment. The Chromosomes and Plant Cell Division in Space (CHROMEX), a life sciences experiment, was designed to show the effects of [[Micro-g environment|microgravity]] on root development. An [[IMAX]] (70 mm) camera was used to film a variety of scenes for the 1990 IMAX film [[Blue Planet (film)|''Blue Planet'']],<ref name="LATimes 1989-03-18">{{cite news|last1=Venant|first1=Elizabeth|title=Astronauts Play Film Makers for IMAX 'Blue Planet'|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-03-18-ca-273-story.html|url-status=live|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=March 18, 1989|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106175224/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-03-18-ca-273-story.html|archive-date=January 6, 2021}}</ref> including the effects of floods, hurricanes, wildfires and volcanic eruptions on Earth. A ground-based [[United States Air Force|U.S. Air Force]] experiment used the orbiter as a calibration target for the [[Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing observatory|Air Force Maui Optical Site]] (AMOS) in [[Hawaii]].<ref name="SOAR 90">{{cite conference|last1=Viereck|first1=R. A.|last2=Murad|first2=E.|last3=Pike|first3=C. P.|last4=Kofsky|first4=I. L.|last5=Trowbridge|first5=C. A.|last6=Rall|first6=D. L. A.|last7=Satayesh|first7=A.|last8=Berk|first8=A.|last9=Elgin|first9=J. B. |title=Photometric analysis of a space shuttle water venting|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/19910011413/downloads/19910011413.pdf|conference=Fourth Annual Workshop on Space Operations Applications and Research (SOAR 90)|publisher=NASA|place=Houston, Texas|year=1990|pages=676–680}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
== Wake-up calls ==
NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during the [[Project Gemini]], and first used music to wake up a flight crew during [[Apollo 15]]. Each track is specially chosen, often by the astronauts' families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.<ref name="Wakeup Calls">{{cite web|url=https://history.nasa.gov/wakeup%20calls.pdf |title=Chronology of Wakeup Calls|last=Fries|first=Colin|work=History Division|publisher=NASA|date=March 13, 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210105144032/https://history.nasa.gov/wakeup%20calls.pdf|archive-date=January 5, 2021|access-date=January 5, 2021}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Flight Day
! Song
! Artist/Composer
|-
| Day 2
| "[[I Got You (I Feel Good)]]"
| [[James Brown]]
|-
| Day 3
| "[[Marine Corps Hymn]]"
|
|-
| Day 4
| "Theme from [[Star Trek: The Original Series|''Star Trek: TOS'']]"
| [[Alexander Courage]]
|-
| Day 5
| "[[Heigh-Ho]]"
| Song from the [[Walt Disney]] animated film ''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)|Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs]]''
|-
| Day 6
| "[[What a Wonderful World]]"
| [[Louis Armstrong]]
|}
== Gallery ==
<gallery>
Image:STS-29 Launch.jpg|Liftoff of STS-29
Image:STS-29 External Tank.jpg|The [[Space Shuttle External Tank|External Tank]] after separation
Image:1989 s29 TDRS-D deployment.jpg|Closeup shot of the deployment of TDRS-D
Image:EFS highres STS029 STS029-92-38.jpg|[[Lake Natron]], [[Tanzania]], imaged from orbit.
</gallery>
== See also ==
{{Portal|Spaceflight}}
* [[List of human spaceflights]]
* [[List of Space Shuttle missions]]
== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}
== External links ==
* [http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-29/mission-sts-29.html NASA mission summary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190610123144/https://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-29/mission-sts-29.html |date=June 10, 2019 }}
* [http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle28.htm STS-29 Video Highlights] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021145650/http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle28.htm |date=October 21, 2013 }}
{{Space Shuttle Discovery}}
{{All U.S. Space Shuttle Missions}}
{{Orbital launches in 1989}}
[[Category:Space Shuttle missions]]
[[Category:Edwards Air Force Base]]
[[Category:Spacecraft which reentered in 1989]]
[[Category:Spacecraft launched in 1989]]
[[Category:March 1989 events]]