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1986 in spaceflight
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| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| year | 1986 |
| image | Challenger explosion.jpg |
| caption | disintegrates during the launch of STS-51-L, killing all seven astronauts |
| maidens | Ariane 2 |
| retired | Ariane 1 |
| orbital | 2 |
| totalcrew | 9 |
| firstsat |
The year 1986 saw the destruction of Space Shuttle Challenger shortly after lift-off, killing all seven aboard, the first in-flight deaths of American astronauts. This accident followed the successful flight of Columbia just weeks earlier, and dealt a major setback to the U.S. crewed space program, suspending the Shuttle program for 32 months.
The year also saw numerous fly-bys of Halley's Comet as well as other successes.
Launches
January
|- |d-date=18 January |d-time=13:58 |d-date=18 January |d-time=13:58 |d-date=18 January |d-time=13:58 All seven astronauts were killed, including Christa McAuliffe, the intended first Teacher in Space. First Shuttle launch from LC-39B. |o-span=3 |d-time=+ 73 seconds |d-span=3 |o-span=inherit |d-span=inherit |o-span=inherit |d-span=inherit
February
|- |d-date=23 March 2001 |d-time=05:07 SPOT 1 retired on 31 December 1990 and orbit was lowered to a disposal orbit in 2003 Viking is the first Swedish satellite, and operations concluded on 12 May 1987
March
|- Final flight of the Soyuz-T spacecraft. Only spacecraft to dock with two space stations during one flight. (Salyut 7 and Mir) Mir EO-1 |d-date=16 July |d-time=12:34 |d-date=21 April |d-time=00:48 Operational: Geosynchronous
April
|- Final flight of the KH-9 spacecraft |o-span=2 |d-time=+ 8.5 seconds |d-span=2 |o-span=inherit |d-span=inherit |d-date=23 June |d-time=18:41
May
|- |d-date=3 May |d-date=30 May |d-time=04:26 |d-date=31 May
August
|- |d-date=2 November 2010 |d-time=15:14
September
|- |d-date=28 October 1986
November
|-
December
|- |}
Deep space rendezvous
| Date (GMT) | Spacecraft | Event | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 January | Voyager 2 | Flyby of Uranus | Closest approach: 71000 km |
| 6 March | Vega 1 | Flyby of Halley's Comet | Closest approach: 8890 km |
| 8 March | Suisei | Flyby of Halley's Comet | Closest approach: 151000 km |
| 9 March | Vega 2 | Flyby of Halley's Comet | Closest approach: 8030 km |
| 11 March | Sakigake | Distant flyby of Halley's Comet | Closest approach: 6990000 km |
| 14 March | Giotto | Flyby of Halley's Comet | Closest approach: 595 km |
EVAs
| Start date/time | Duration | End time | Spacecraft | Crew | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 May | |||||
| 05:43 | 3 hours | ||||
| 50 minutes | 09:33 | Salyut 7 EO-5 | USSRLeonid Kizim | ||
| USSRVladimir Solovyov | Retrieved test panels from the outside of Salyut 7 and assembled a test "girder-constructor" apparatus in preparation for work on Mir. | ||||
| 31 May | |||||
| 04:57 | 5 hours | 09:57 | Salyut 7 EO-5 | USSRLeonid Kizim | |
| USSRVladimir Solovyov | Conducted additional tests on the experimental construction equipment, including the welding of several girders joints. |
References
References
- (19 January 2016). "NASA - STS-51L Mission Profile". NASA.
- "Mission Archives: STS-61-C". NASA.
- "Mission Archives: STS-26". NASA.
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