STS-4

Crew

STS-4, being the last test flight of the Space Shuttle, was also the last to carry a crew of two astronauts. Commander Ken Mattingly had previously flown as Command Module Pilot on Apollo 16, and was also the original Command Module Pilot for Apollo 13 before being replaced by his backup, Jack Swigert, after being exposed to German measles. Hartsfield was a rookie astronaut who had transferred to NASA in 1969 after the cancellation of the Air Force's Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program. He had previously served as a capsule communicator (CAPCOM) on Apollo 16, all three Skylab missions, and STS-1. Both men had graduated from Auburn University, the only time an entire Space Shuttle flight crew were graduates of the same university.

Backup crew

From STS-4 onwards, NASA halted the appointment and training of complete backup flight crews. Instead, individual flight crew members were assigned backups who could take their place within the prime crew. The decision on whether to appoint a reserve crew member was made on a per-flight basis by flight management teams at Johnson Space Center. Consequently, the last NASA flight to have a full-time backup crew was STS-3.

Support crew

• Roy D. Bridges Jr. (entry CAPCOM)
• Michael L. Coats
• S. David Griggs (ascent CAPCOM)
• George D. Nelson
• Brewster H. Shaw

Crew seat assignments

Mission summary

STS-4 launched from Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on June 27, 1982, at 15:00:00UTC, with Ken Mattingly as commander and Henry Hartsfield as pilot. This mission marked the first time the Space Shuttle launched precisely at its scheduled launch time. It was also the last research and development flight in the program, after which NASA considered the shuttle operational. After this flight, Columbia's ejection seats were deactivated, and shuttle crews did not wear pressure suits again until STS-26 in 1988.

STS-4's cargo consisted of the first Getaway Special (GAS) payloads, including nine scientific experiments provided by students from Utah State University, and a classified U.S. Air Force payload. A secret mission control center in Sunnyvale, California participated in monitoring the flight. Mattingly, an active-duty naval officer, later described the classified payload – two sensors for detecting missile launches – as a "rinky-dink collection of minor stuff they wanted to fly". The payload failed to operate. The National Reconnaissance Office intended to fly DAMON, a secret payload intended to replace KH-9 HEXAGON, but it was canceled in December 1980.

In the shuttle's mid-deck, a Continuous Flow Electrophoresis System and the Mono-disperse Latex Reactor flew for the second time. The crew conducted a lightning survey with hand-held cameras, and performed medical experiments on themselves for two student projects. They also operated the Remote Manipulator System (Canadarm) with an instrument called the Induced Environment Contamination Monitor mounted on its end, designed to obtain information on gases or particles being released by the orbiter in flight.

Columbia landed on July 4, 1982, at 16:09:31UTC, on the 15000 ft concrete runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base, the first orbital Shuttle landing on a concrete runway. This time the lead escorting T-38 "Chase 1" was piloted by Guy Gardner with crewmate Jerry L. Ross. President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan greeted the crew upon arrival. Following the landing, President Reagan gave a speech to the crowd gathered at Edwards, during which he declared the Space Shuttle operational. He was followed by remarks from Mattingly and Hartsfield and a flyover of the new shuttle Challenger atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), headed for KSC.

The flight lasted 7days, 1hour, 9minutes, and 31seconds, and covered a total distance of 4700000 km in 112 complete orbits. The mission achieved all objectives except for the Air Force payload, but the SRBs were lost when their main parachutes failed, causing the empty casings to impact the ocean at high velocity and sink. This and STS-51-L were the only missions where the SRBs were not recovered. Columbia returned to KSC on July 15, 1982.

Gallery

Image:STS-4 Induced Environment Contaminant Monitor.jpg|The Induced Environment Contaminant Monitor (IECM) is grappled by the Canadarm. File:STS-4 landing.jpg|Space Shuttle Columbia lands at Edwards Air Force Base runway 22. Image:NASA salutes Reagans.jpg|Henry Hartsfield and Ken Mattingly salute the Reagans after landing. Image:Ronald and Nancy Reagan NASA 1982.jpg|President Reagan and his wife Nancy observe the shuttle's forward tiles and nosecone.

Mission insignia

The path of the red, white, and blue streak on the mission patch forms the numeral "4", indicating the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence.

Wake-up calls

NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during the Project Gemini, and first used music to wake up a flight crew during Apollo 15. Each track is specially chosen, often by the astronauts' families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.

References

References

1. (June 28, 1982). "Shuttle off on military operations". The Spokesman-Review.
2. (July 5, 1982). "Shuttle test: 'Outstanding' was the word". The Spokesman-Review.
3. "STS-004 Press Kit". NASA.
4. (2020-04-02). "50 Years Ago: Apollo 13 and German Measles".
5. "STS-4". Spacefacts.
6. (June 29, 1982). "Students hope for a space fix-it". Deseret News.
7. (June 30, 1982). "USU team, astronauts, cheer fix-it job". Deseret News.
8. Wilford, John Noble. (1984-12-18). "MILITARY MISSION OF SPACE SHUTTLE TO BE KEPT SECRET". The New York Times.
9. Cassutt, Michael. (August 2009). "Secret Space Shuttles". Air & Space.
10. Day, Dwayne Allen. (2019-07-01). "Top Secret DAMON: the classified reconnaissance payload planned for the fourth space shuttle mission".
11. Fries, Colin. (June 25, 2007). "Chronology of Wakeup Calls". NASA.