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STS-90

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STS-90

AKA: Columbia;Neurolab. Launched: 1998-04-17. Returned: 1998-05-03. Number crew: 7 . Duration: 15.91 days.

Columbia rolled out to pad 39B on March 23. Payloads:

• Spacelab transfer tunnel
• Spacelab Long Module, with Neurolab experiments for the following life science studies:
  • Chronic Recording of Otolith Nerves in Microgravity
  • Development of the Aortic Baroreflex under Conditions of Microgravity
  • Neural-Thyroid Interaction on Skeletal Isomyosin Expression in OG
  • Spatial Orientation of the Vestibulo-Ocular Reflex and Velocity Storage
  • Autonomic Neuroplasticity in Weightlessness

• Extended Duration Orbiter pallet
• Two Get Away Special beams with canisters G-197, G-467, G-772 (Colorado's COLLIDE experiment, which collided small particles into each other to simulate the formation of planets and rings).

The Neurolab mission was managed by NASA-Johnson at Houston, unlike earlier Spacelab flights which were NASA-Marshall/Huntsville's responsibility. Landed at Kennedy Space Center May 3 1998.

NASA Official Mission Summary:

STS-90
(Neurolab)
Columbia
Pad B
90th Shuttle mission
25th flight of OV-102
43rd KSC landing
Final Spacelab module mission
First KSC Astronaut
Crew:
Richard A. Searfoss, Commander (3rd Shuttle flight)
Scott D. Altman, Pilot (1st)
Richard M. Linnehan, Payload Commander and Mission Specialist (2nd)
Dafydd "Dave" Rhys Williams, Mission Specialist (1st), (Canadian Space Agency)
Kathryn P. "Kay" Hire, Mission Specialist (1st)
Jay C. Buckey, Payload Specialist (1st)
James A. "Jim" Pawelczyk, Payload Specialist (1st)
Orbiter Preps (move to):
OPF - Dec. 5, 1997
VAB - March 16, 1998
Pad - March 23, 1998

Launch:

April 17, 1998, 2:19:00 p.m. EDT. Launch postponed on April 16 for 24 hours due to difficulty with one of Columbia's two network signal processors, which format data and voice communications between the ground and the Space Shuttle. Network signal processor 2 was replaced, and liftoff on April 17 occurred on time.

Landing:

May 3, 1998, 12:08:59 p.m. EDT, Runway 33, Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Rollout distance: 9,998 feet (3,047 meters). Rollout time: 58 seconds. Mission duration: 15 days, 21 hours, 49 minutes, 59 seconds. Landed on orbit 256, on first KSC opportunity for day. Logged 6.375 million statute miles. Marked 14th consecutive Shuttle landing at KSC and 21st in the last 22 missions.

Mission Highlights:

Neurolab's 26 experiments targeted one of the most complex and least understood parts of the human body – the nervous system. Primary goals were to conduct basic research in neurosciences and expand understanding of how the nervous system develops and functions in space. Test subjects were crew members and rats, mice, crickets, snails and two kinds of fish. Cooperative effort of NASA, several domestic partners and the space agencies of Canada (CSA), France (CNES) and Germany (DARA), as well as the European Space Agency (ESA) and the National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA).

Most experiments conducted in pressurized Spacelab long module located in Columbia's payload bay. This was 16th and last scheduled flight of the ESA-developed Spacelab module although Spacelab pallets will continue to be used on the International Space Station. Research conducted as planned, with the exception of the Mammalian Development Team, which had to reprioritize science activities because of the unexpected high mortality rate of neonatal rats on board.

Other payloads included the Shuttle Vibration Forces experiment, the Bioreactor Demonstration System-04, and three Get- Away Special (GAS) canister investigations.

Working with engineers on the ground a week into the flight, the on-orbit crew used aluminum tape to bypass a suspect valve in the Regenerative Carbon Dioxide Removal System that had threatened to cut short the mission.

Mission Management Team considered, but decided against, extending the mission one day because the science community indicated an extended flight was not necessary and weather conditions were expected to deteriorate after planned landing on Sunday, May 3.

STS-90 Mission Specialist Kay Hire was Kennedy Space Center's first employee to be chosen as an astronaut candidate.

Photo Gallery

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Williams Dave Credit: www.spacefacts.de

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STS-90 Credit: www.spacefacts.de

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• STS-90 - . Call Sign: Columbia. Crew: Altman, Buckey, Hire, Linnehan, Pawelczyk, Searfoss, Williams, Dave. Backup Crew: Dunlap, Mukai. Payload: Columbia F25 / Spacelab LM Eurolab. Mass: 115,900 kg (255,500 lb). Nation: USA. Agency: NASA Houston. Manufacturer: Bremen. Program: STS. Class: Manned. Type: Manned spaceplane. Flight: STS-90. Spacecraft Bus: Shuttle. Spacecraft: Columbia. Duration: 15.91 days. Decay Date: 1998-05-03 . USAF Sat Cat: 25297 . COSPAR: 1998-022A. Apogee: 274 km (170 mi). Perigee: 247 km (153 mi). Inclination: 39.00 deg. Period: 89.70 min.

  Columbia rolled out to pad 39B on March 23. Payloads:

  • Spacelab transfer tunnel
  • Spacelab Long Module, with Neurolab experiments for the following life science studies:
    • Chronic Recording of Otolith Nerves in Microgravity
    • Development of the Aortic Baroreflex under Conditions of Microgravity
    • Neural-Thyroid Interaction on Skeletal Isomyosin Expression in OG
    • Spatial Orientation of the Vestibulo-Ocular Reflex and Velocity Storage
    • Autonomic Neuroplasticity in Weightlessness

  • Extended Duration Orbiter pallet
  • Two Get Away Special beams with canisters G-197, G-467, G-772 (Colorado's COLLIDE experiment, which collided small particles into each other to simulate the formation of planets and rings).

  The Neurolab mission was managed by NASA-Johnson at Houston, unlike earlier Spacelab flights which were NASA-Marshall/Huntsville's responsibility. Landed at Kennedy Space Center May 3 1998.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Think - . Flight: STS-90. "Think" by Aretha Franklin CAPCOM: Chris Hadfield.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Take Me Out to the Ball Game - . Flight: STS-90. "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" sung by Harry Carey CAPCOM: Chris Hadfield.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Doctor My Eyes - . Flight: STS-90. "Doctor My Eyes" by Jackson Browne CAPCOM: Chris Hadfield.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Bad To the Bone - . Flight: STS-90. "Bad To the Bone" by George Thorogood and the Destroyers CAPCOM: Chris Hadfield.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Bad Case of Loving You - . Flight: STS-90. "Bad Case of Loving You" by Robert Palmer CAPCOM: Chris Hadfield.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: I Got You (I Feel Good) - . Flight: STS-90. "I Got You (I Feel Good)" by James Brown CAPCOM: Chris Hadfield.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: This Land Is Your Land - . Flight: STS-90. "This Land Is Your Land" by Rod Taylor CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: She Drives Me Crazy - . Flight: STS-90. "She Drives Me Crazy" by The Fine Young Cannibals CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Every Breath You Take - . Flight: STS-90. "Every Breath You Take" by The Police CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Fight On, State - . Flight: STS-90. "Fight On, State" Fight Song for Penn State University CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Turn, Turn, Turn - . Flight: STS-90. "Turn, Turn, Turn" by The Byrds CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Take a Chance on Me - . Flight: STS-90. "Take a Chance on Me" by Abba CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Round and Round - . Flight: STS-90. "Round and Round" by Ratt CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Cruise Control - . Flight: STS-90. "Cruise Control" by Bruce Hornsby CAPCOM: Bill McArthur.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: If I Only Had a Brain - . Flight: STS-90. "If I Only Had a Brain" from"The Wizard of Oz" CAPCOM: Bob Curbeam.

• STS-90 - Wakeup Song: Stir It Up - . Flight: STS-90. "Stir It Up" by Bob Marley and the Wailers CAPCOM: Bob Curbeam.

• Landing of STS-90 - . Return Crew: Altman, Buckey, Hire, Linnehan, Pawelczyk, Searfoss, Williams, Dave. Nation: USA. Related Persons: Altman, Buckey, Hire, Linnehan, Pawelczyk, Searfoss, Williams, Dave. Program: Spacelab. Flight: STS-90. STS-90 landed at 16:09 GMT. .