STS-42
International microgravity research mission aboard Space Shuttle Discovery.
STS-42 was a NASA Space Shuttle Discovery mission that launched on January 22, 1992, carrying the Spacelab module. Its primary goal was to study the effects of microgravity on a variety of organisms and materials. The mission featured an international crew divided into red and blue teams for around-the-clock experiment monitoring, and included the first non-American astronauts on a shuttle since the Challenger disaster.
Quick Facts
- Names List
- Space Transportation System-42
- Mission Type
- International Microgravity Laboratory-1
- Operator
- NASA
- Distance Travelled
- 4701140 km
- Orbits Completed
- 129
- Spacecraft
- 103
- Launch Mass
- 110400 kg
- Landing Mass
- 98924 kg
- Payload Mass
- 13066 kg
- Crew Size
- 7
- Crew Members
- Ronald J. Grabe · Stephen S. Oswald · Norman Thagard · William F. Readdy · David C. Hilmers · Roberta Bondar · Ulf Merbold
- Launch Site
- Kennedy, LC-39A
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
STS-42 was originally scheduled for launch at 8:45 EST on January 22, 1992, but was delayed one hour due to weather constraints. Discovery lifted off at 9:52:33 EST on its 14th flight. The mission carried the International Microgravity Laboratory-1 (IML-1), a pressurized Spacelab module, to explore the effects of weightlessness on living organisms and materials processing. The crew conducted experiments on shrimp eggs, lentil seedlings, fruit fly eggs, bacteria, and crystal growth from enzymes, mercury, iodine, and a virus.
Reader's Guide
STS-42 was significant as the first shuttle mission after the Challenger disaster to include non-American astronauts, highlighting renewed international cooperation. It was also the last Discovery mission with a seven-member crew until STS-82 in 1997. The mission's focus on microgravity research advanced understanding of biological and materials processes in space. The mission insignia honors astronaut Manley Lanier 'Sonny' Carter Jr., who died in a plane crash before launch and was originally assigned to the crew. The mission was extended by a day for continued scientific experimentation.
Did You Know?
- The launch was delayed by one hour due to weather constraints.
- The crew included Ulf D. Merbold, West Germany's first astronaut, and Roberta Bondar, Canada's first female astronaut.
- Mary L. Cleave withdrew from the mission for personal reasons and was replaced by Manley Lanier 'Sonny' Carter Jr., who died in a plane crash before launch; David Hilmers then replaced him.
- The mission landed on Runway 22 at Edwards Air Force Base, California, after being extended by a day.
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