Watch the Launch

STS-103

Circle Image

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Astrophysics

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

STS-103 was a Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission by Space Shuttle Discovery. The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on 19 December 1999 and returned on 27 December 1999.

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 Discovery


In-active Human Rated Crew On-board: 7 Crew Capacity: 7 Payload Capacity: 27500 kg
Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Serial Number: OV-103

Space Shuttle Discovery (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) is one of the orbiters from NASA's Space Shuttle program and the third of five fully operational orbiters to be built. Its first mission, STS-41-D, flew from August 30 to September 5, 1984. Over 27 years of service it launched and landed 39 times, gathering more spaceflights than any other spacecraft to date. Discovery became the third operational orbiter to enter service, preceded by Columbia and Challenger. It embarked on its last mission, STS-133, on February 24, 2011 and touched down for the final time at Kennedy Space Center on March 9, having spent a cumulative total of almost a full year in space. Discovery performed both research and International Space Station (ISS) assembly missions. It also carried the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit. Discovery was the first operational shuttle to be retired, followed by Endeavour and then Atlantis.

Space Shuttle Details

Crew


Curtis Brown

Commander - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: March 11, 1956
Age: 68

Scott Kelly

Pilot - configurations.Country.None - ( NASA )

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Feb. 21, 1964
Age: 60

Jean-François Clervoy

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

Status: Active

Date of Birth: Nov. 19, 1958
Age: 66

Claude Nicollier

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

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Sept. 2, 1944
Age: 80

Steven Smith

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

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Dec. 30, 1958
Age: 66

John M. Grunsfeld

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

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Oct. 10, 1958
Age: 66

Michael Foale

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

Status: Retired

Date of Birth: Jan. 6, 1957
Age: 68

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

Related News

NASA

25 Years Ago: STS-103, The Hubble Servicing Mission-3A

“Trying to do stellar observations from Earth is like trying to do birdwatching from the bottom of a lake.” James B. Odom, Hubble Program Manager 1983-1990. The third servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, placed in orbit in 1990…

NASA Spaceflight

Hubble returned to operational service, showcases exoplanet’s second atmosphere

The Hubble Space Telescope recently garnered headlines for a software anomaly that caused the iconic observatory to enter safe mode as its control teams worked to successfully restore the telescope to operational status.

Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

Launch Complex 39A


Falcon 9
Success
2 weeks ago
Starlink Group 12-11
Launch Complex 39A - Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

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


Falcon 9
Success
2 weeks, 1 day ago
Starlink Group 6-71
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

A batch of 24 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Long March 3
Success
2 weeks, 1 day ago
Shijian 25
Launch Complex 3 (LC-3/LA-1) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Technological demonstration mission for spacecraft refueling and satellite life extension services.


Falcon 9
Success
2 weeks, 4 days ago
Thuraya 4-NGS
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

Thuraya 4-NGS is a communication satellite being built by Airbus Defense and Space for the UAE based Yahsat. Based on the all-electric Airbus Eurosta…


Falcon 9
Success
3 weeks, 1 day ago
Starlink Group 12-6
Launch Complex 39A - Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

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


PSLV
Success
3 weeks, 2 days ago
SPADEX (Space Docking Experiment)
Satish Dhawan Space Centre First Launch Pad - Satish Dhawan Space Centre, India

SPADEX (Space Docking Experiment) is an Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) technology mission to demonstrate autonomous docking between 2 spac…


Falcon 9
Success
3 weeks, 3 days ago
Astranis: From One to Many (4x Astranis MicroGEO)
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral SFS, FL, USA

Four Astranis MicroGEO communications satellite to be inserted in a custom geostationary orbit, from where they conduct on-orbit maneuvers to reach t…


Falcon 9
Success
3 weeks, 3 days ago
Starlink Group 11-3
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.


Kinetica 1
Failure
3 weeks, 5 days ago
DEAR-3 & 10 other satellites
Launch Area 130 - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Launched 11 satellites including AZSPACE's DEAR-3 prototype recoverable science experiment spacecraft and the French CASAA-Sat cubesat from the Marse…


Soyuz 2.1b
Success
4 weeks ago
Resurs-P No.5
31/6 - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan

Resurs-P is a series of Russian commercial Earth observation satellites capable of acquiring high-resolution imagery (resolution up to 1.0 m).