STS-53

Launch, orbit & landing data: Designation  22259 / 92086A Launch date - time  02 Dec 1992 - 13:24:00 UT Launch site  KSC, LC39A Launch vehicle  Space Shuttle Orbiter  Discovery OV-103 (#15) Primary payload  USA-89 / ODERACS A-F Mass (kg)   Flight Crew  Walker, Cabana, Bluford Voss, Clifford Call Sign   Earth orbit on :    - Perigee / Apogee   km    - Inclination  57°    - Period   min Landing date - time  09 Dec 1992 - 20:43:47 UT Landing location  Edwards AFB, Runway 22 Flight Duration (d:hr:min)  7d 07h 19m Nbr orbits  116 Distance traveled  4,883,843 km

Crew

Mission details:

Manned five crew. Deployed classified military satellite USA 89. The ODERACS payload was unable to be deployed because of payload equipment malfunction. Payloads: Department of Defense (DOD)1; Glow Experiment/Cryogenic Heat Pipe Experiment Payload (GCP); Orbital Debris Radar Calibration System (ODERACS); Battlefield Laser Acquisition Sensor Test (BLAST); Cloud Logic To Optimize Use of Defense Systems (CLOUDS) 1A; Cosmic Radiation Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM); Fluid Acquisition and Resupply Equipment (FARE); Hand-held, Earth-oriented, Real-time, Cooperative, User-friendly, Location-targeting and Environmental System (HER-CULES); Microencapsulation in Space (MIS)-1; Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME) III; Spare Tissue Loss (STL); Visual Function Tester (VFT)2.

Orbiter Liftoff Mass: 110,654 kg. Orbiter Mass at Landing: 87,639 kg. Payload to Orbit: 11,868 kg. Payload Returned: 2,336 kg. Landed at: Concrete Runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base, Cali. Landing Speed: 387 kph. Touchdown miss distance: 362 m. Landing Rollout: 3,098 m.

Mission Name: STS-53 (52)
DISCOVERY (15)
Pad 39-A (47)
52nd Shuttle Mission
15th Launch of OV-103
EAFB Landing (37)

Crew:
David M. Walker (3), Commander
Robert D. Cabana (2), Pilot
Guion S. Bluford (4), Mission Specialist 1
James S. Voss (2), Mission Specialist 2
Michael R. Clifford (1), Mission Specialist 3

Milestones:
OPF-3 - 8/17/92
VAB: - 11/3/92
PAD 39A: - 11/8/92

Payload:
DoD(9),ODERACS,GCP,MIS-1,STL,VFT-2,CREAM,RME-III,FARE,HERCULES,
BLAST,CLOUDS
Mission Objectives:

Launch:
Dec. 2, 1992, 8:24 a.m. EST. Launch delayed l hour and 25 minutes because of ice buildup on the external tank. Discovery Empty weight: 173,597 lbs. Orbiter weight at liftoff: 243,952. Payload up weight: 26,166 lbs.
Orbit:
Altitude: 174nm
Inclination: 57 degrees
Orbits: 116
Duration: 7 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes, 47 seconds.
Distance: miles

Hardware:
SRB: BI-055
SRM: 360L028
ET : 49
MLP: 3
SSME-1: SN-2024
SSME-2: SN-2012
SSME-3: SN-2017

Landing:
Dec. 9, 1992, 3:43.17 p.m. EST, Runway 22, Edwards AFB, Calif., orbit 115. Mission Elapsed Time: 7 days, 7 hours, 19 minutes, 17 seconds. Rollout distance: 10,165 feet. Landing diverted from KSC because of cloud cover. Orbiter returned to KSC on Dec. l8. Orbiter Landing Weight: 193,215. Payload down weight: 5,151 lbs.

Mission Highlights:
Classified Department of Defense primary payload, plus two unclassified secondary payloads and nine unclassified middeck experiments.
Secondary payloads contained in or attached to Get Away Special (GAS)hardware in the cargo bay included the Orbital Debris Radar Calibration Spheres (ODERACS) the combined Shuttle Glow Experiment/Cryogenic Heat Pipe Experiment (GCP).
Middeck experiments included Microcapsules in Space (MIS-l); Space Tissue Loss (STL); Visual Function Tester (VFT-2); Cosmic Radiation Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM); Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME-III); Fluid Acquisition and Resupply Experiment (FARE); Hand-held, Earth-oriented, Real-time, Cooperative, User-friendly, Location-targeting and Environmental System (HERCULES); Battlefield Laser Acquisition Sensor Test (BLAST); and the Cloud Logic to Optimize Use of Defense Systems (CLOUDS).