STS-29
1989 American crewed spaceflight to deploy TDRS-4 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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STS-29 was the 28th NASA Space Shuttle mission, during which Space Shuttle Discovery inserted a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) into Earth orbit.[1] It was the third shuttle mission following the Challenger disaster in 1986, and launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on March 13, 1989.[2] 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.
Names | Space Transportation System-29 STS-29R |
---|---|
Mission type | TDRS-D deployment |
Operator | NASA |
COSPAR ID | 1989-021A |
SATCAT no. | 19882 |
Mission duration | 4 days, 23 hours, 38 minutes, 50 seconds (achieved) |
Distance travelled | 3,200,000 km (2,000,000 mi) |
Orbits completed | 80 |
Spacecraft properties | |
Spacecraft | Space Shuttle Discovery |
Launch mass | 116,281 kg (256,356 lb) |
Landing mass | 88,353 kg (194,785 lb) |
Payload mass | 17,280 kg (38,100 lb) |
Crew | |
Crew size | 5 |
Members | |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | March 13, 1989, 14:57:00 UTC |
Rocket | Space Shuttle Discovery |
Launch site | Kennedy Space Center, LC-39B |
Contractor | Rockwell International |
End of mission | |
Landing date | March 18, 1989, 14:35:50 UTC |
Landing site | Edwards Air Force Base, Runway 22 |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
Regime | Low Earth orbit |
Perigee altitude | 297 km (185 mi) |
Apogee altitude | 308 km (191 mi) |
Inclination | 28.45° |
Period | 90.60 minutes |
Instruments | |
| |
STS-29 mission patch Back row: James P. Bagian, Robert C. Springer, James Buchli Front row: John E. Blaha and Michael Coats |
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.