| Imagery | |
From
the Gallery:
STS-95 Pilot Steve Lindsey, left, and Mission Specialist
Scott Parazynski work on an experiment in SPACEHAB.
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Discovery
Crew Performs Wide Range of Science Experiments
During STS-95, the crew of Space Shuttle Discovery spent nine
days in orbit successfully completing a large variety of experiments,
including investigations in the astronomical, human physiology
and physical science fields. A SPACEHAB module in the shuttle's
payload bay provided a complete pressurized laboratory and
work space for the crew's science activities.
Discovery
launched Oct. 29, 1998, with a seven-member crew:
Commander Curt Brown, Pilot Steven Lindsey, Mission Specialists
Scott Parazynski, Pedro Duque and Stephen Robinson and Payload
Specialists Chiaki Mukai and John Glenn. Duque, a native of
Madrid, Spain, represented the European Space Agency, and
Mukai represented NASDA, the Japanese Space Agency.
One highlight
of the mission was the free-flight of SPARTAN 201, an experiment
package that was carried to orbit in Discovery's cargo bay.
Robinson used the shuttle's robotic arm to lift the payload
from its berth and gently release it to fly on its own. The
spacecraft spent two days gathering data before being retrieved
and stored on the shuttle once more. Researchers used the
SPARTAN data to better understand the solar wind, a phenomenon
that sometimes can cause widespread disruptions of communications
and power supplies on Earth.
A payload
carried in Discovery's cargo bay verified the flight readiness
of hardware destined for a Hubble Space Telescope maintenance
mission that would be carried out a year later.
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| John
Glenn | |
STS-95
Payload Specialist John Glenn works aboard Space Shuttle
Discovery.
Check
out a comparison of
Glenn's two spacecraft, Friendship 7 and Space Shuttle
Discovery.
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American
Space Pioneer Flies Again
Space Shuttle Discovery carried former U.S. Sen. John Glenn
to space during STS-95. In 1962, Glenn was the first American
to orbit the Earth. At the age of 77, he added another milestone
to NASA's history by becoming the oldest human to fly in space.
Glenn's
first flight -- aboard the Mercury spacecraft Friendship 7
-- lasted less than five hours. Thirty-five years later, his
second flight lasted almost nine days. During the 1998 shuttle
mission, Glenn conducted a series of investigations into the
physiology of the human aging process.
Scientists
recognize several parallels between the effects of space flight
on the human body and the natural changes that take place
as a person ages. Glenn's
experiments were designed to test how his body responded
to the microgravity environment.
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