Watch the Launch

STS-61-C

Circle Image

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Communications

Low Earth Orbit Launch Complex 39A Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

STS-61-C was the twenty-fourth mission of the shuttle program and the seventh of the Space Shuttle Columbia. The mission included the second African-American shuttle pilot, future NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, the first Costa Rican born astronaut and the second sitting politican to fly in space: Bill Nelson.

Space Shuttle

Family:
Configuration:

The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program name was Space Transportation System (STS). Five complete Space Shuttle orbiter vehicles were built and flown on a total of 135 missions from 1981 to 2011.

Specifications
  • Stages
    2
  • Length
    56.1 m
  • Diameter
    8.0 m
  • Fairing Diameter
  • Launch Mass
    2030.0 T
  • Thrust
    28200.0 kN
Family
  • Name
    Space Shuttle
  • Family
  • Variant
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Space Shuttle
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
    $450000000
  • Low Earth Orbit
    27500.0 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

Space Shuttle Columbia


In-active Human Rated Crew On-board: 7 Crew Capacity: 7 Payload Capacity: 27500 kg
Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Serial Number: OV-102

Space Shuttle Columbia (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-102) was the first space-rated orbiter in NASA's Space Shuttle fleet. It launched for the first time on mission STS-1 on April 12, 1981, the first flight of the Space Shuttle program. Over 22 years of service, it completed 27 missions before disintegrating during re-entry near the end of its 28th mission, STS-107 on February 1, 2003, resulting in the deaths of all seven crew members.

Space Shuttle Details

Crew


Robert L. Gibson

Commander - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Oct. 30, 1946
Age: 78

Charles Bolden

Pilot - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Aug. 19, 1946
Age: 78

Bill Nelson

Payload Specialist - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Sept. 29, 1942
Age: 82

Robert J. Cenker

Payload Specialist - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Nov. 5, 1948
Age: 76

George Nelson

Mission Specialist - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: July 13, 1950
Age: 74

Steven Hawley

Mission Specialist - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Dec. 12, 1951
Age: 73

Franklin Chang Díaz

Mission Specialist - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: April 5, 1950
Age: 74

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

(NASA)

Acting Administrator: James Free Founded: 1958 Successes: 121 Failures: 20 Pending: 6

Agency Type:

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. NASA have many launch facilities but most are inactive. The most commonly used pad will be LC-39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

INFO WIKI

Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Launch Complex 39A


Falcon 9
Success
20 hours, 59 minutes ago
Starlink Group 15-1
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

A batch of 22 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Long March 3
Success
1 day, 10 hours ago
ChinaSat 10R
Launch Complex 2 (LC-2) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Ku-band geostationary communication satellite for China Satcom at 110.5° East, replacing ChinaSat 10.


Falcon 9
Success
2 days, 7 hours ago
Starlink Group 12-14
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
4 days, 23 hours ago
Starlink Group 10-12
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system. First Starlink launch …


Electron
Success
4 days, 23 hours ago
Fasten Your Space Belts (BlackSky Gen-3 1)
Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1B - Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

The first of five BlackSky Technology missions to deploy its new next-generation BlackSky Gen-3 satellites. The commercial constellation of Gen-3 sat…


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 1 day ago
Starlink Group 12-8
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 21 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 5 days ago
Starlink Group 12-18
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 21 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Long March 8A
Success
1 week, 5 days ago
SatNet LEO Group 02 (Demo Flight)
201 - Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China

Demonstration flight of the Long March 8A rocket with upgraded first stage and boosters engines, and a new larger liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen secon…


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 5 days ago
Starlink Group 11-10
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Electron
Success
2 weeks, 1 day ago
IoT 4 You and Me (Kinéis 16-20)
Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1A - Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

Fourth batch of five satellites for the French Kinéis IoT constellation designed to operate with 25 nanosatellites of 30 kg each.