STS-53 (52)

DISCOVERY (15)

Pad 39-A (47)

52nd Shuttle Mission

15th Launch of OV-103

EAFB Landing (37)

Crew:

David M. Walker (3), Commander

Robert D. Cabana (2), Pilot

Guion S. Bluford (4), Mission Specialist 1

James S. Voss (2), Mission Specialist 2

Michael R. Clifford (1), Mission Specialist 3

Milestones:

OPF-3 - 8/17/92

VAB: - 11/3/92

PAD 39A: - 11/8/92

Payload:

DoD(9), ODERACS, GCP, MIS-1, STL, VFT-2, CREAM, RME-III, FARE, HERCULES,

BLAST, CLOUDS

Mission Objectives:

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Launch:

Dec. 2, 1992, 8:24 a.m. EST. Launch delayed l hour and 25 minutes because of ice buildup on the external tank. Discovery Empty weight: 173,597 lbs. Orbiter weight at liftoff: 243,952. Payload up weight: 26,166 lbs.

Orbit:

Altitude: 174nm

Inclination: 57 degrees

Orbits: 116

Duration: 7 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes, 47 seconds.

Distance: miles

Hardware:

SRB: BI-055

SRM: 360L028

ET : 49

MLP: 3

SSME-1: SN-2024

SSME-2: SN-2012

SSME-3: SN-2017

Landing:

Dec. 9, 1992, 3:43.17 p.m. EST, Runway 22, Edwards AFB, Calif., orbit 115. Mission Elapsed Time: 7 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes, 17 seconds. Rollout distance: 10,165 feet. Landing diverted from KSC because of cloud cover. Orbiter returned to KSC on Dec. l8. Orbiter Landing Weight: 193,215. Payload down weight: 5,151 lbs.

Mission Highlights:

Classified Department of Defense primary payload, plus two unclassified secondary payloads and nine unclassified middeck experiments.

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

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).

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