STS-53

STS-53 was a NASA Space Shuttle Discovery mission in support of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). The mission was launched on December 2, 1992, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida.

STS-53
Launch of Discovery for an Department of Defense (DoD) mission
NamesSpace Transportation System-52
Mission typeSatellite deployment
OperatorNASA
COSPAR ID1992-086A
SATCAT no.22259
Mission duration7 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes, 17 seconds
Distance travelled4,800,000 km (3,000,000 mi)
Orbits completed116
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftSpace Shuttle Discovery
Launch mass110,655 kg (243,953 lb)
Landing mass87,565 kg (193,048 lb)
Payload mass11,860 kg (26,150 lb)
Crew
Crew size5
Members
Start of mission
Launch dateDecember 2, 1992, 13:24:00 UTC
RocketSpace Shuttle Discovery
Launch siteKennedy Space Center, LC-39A
ContractorRockwell International
End of mission
Landing dateDecember 9, 1992, 20:43:17 UTC
Landing siteEdwards Air Force Base
Runway 22
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Perigee altitude365 km (227 mi)
Apogee altitude376 km (234 mi)
Inclination57.00°
Period92.00 minutes
Instruments
  • Battlefield Laser Acquisition Sensor Test (BLAST)
  • Cloud Logic to Optimize Use of Defense Systems (CLOUDS)
  • Cosmic Radiation Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM)
  • Fluid Acquisition and Resupply Experiment (FARE)
  • Get Away Special (GAS)
  • Shuttle Glow Experiment/Cryogenic Heat Pipe Experiment (GCP)
  • Hand-held, Earth-oriented, Real-time, Cooperative, User-friendly, Location-targeting and Environmental System (HERCULES)
  • Microcapsules in Space (MIS-l)
  • Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME-III)
  • Space Tissue Loss (STL)
  • Visual Function Tester (VFT-2)

STS-53 mission patch

Back: Walker, Cabana, Clifford
Front: Bluford, Voss
 

Crew
Position Astronaut
Commander David M. Walker
Third spaceflight
Pilot Robert D. Cabana
Second spaceflight
Mission Specialist 1 Guion Bluford
Fourth and last spaceflight
Mission Specialist 2 Michael R. Clifford
First spaceflight
Mission Specialist 3 James S. Voss
Second spaceflight

Mission highlights

Discovery carried a classified primary payload (DOD-1) for the United States Department of Defense (DoD), two unclassified secondary payloads and nine unclassified middeck experiments.[1]

Discovery's primary payload, USA-89 (1992-086B) is also known as "DoD-1", and was the shuttle's last major payload for the Department of Defense. The satellite was the third launch of a Satellite Data System-2 (SDS 2-3) military communications satellite, after USA-40 on STS-28 and STS-38's deployment of USA-67.[1]

Secondary payloads contained in or attached to Get Away Special (GAS) hardware in the cargo bay included the Orbital Debris Radar Calibration Spheres (ODERACS) satellites and the combined Shuttle Glow Experiment/Cryogenic Heat Pipe Experiment (GCP).[1]

Middeck experiments included Microcapsules in Space (MIS-l); Space Tissue Loss (STL); Visual Function Tester (VFT-2); Cosmic Radiation Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM); Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME-III); Fluid Acquisition and Resupply Experiment (FARE); Hand-held, Earth-oriented, Real-time, Cooperative, User-friendly, Location-targeting and Environmental System (HERCULES); Battlefield Laser Acquisition Sensor Test (BLAST); and the Cloud Logic to Optimize Use of Defense Systems (CLOUDS).[1]

Mission insignia

The five sides represent the Pentagon, the Department of Defense headquarters. The five stars and three stripes of the insignia symbolize the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence.

See also

References
  1. "STS-53 (52)". NASA. June 29, 2001. Retrieved February 11, 2022. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
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