STS-26
The launch was delayed by one hour and thirty-eight minutes due to unseasonable and unusual light winds, and the need to replace fuses in the cooling systems of two crew members' flight suits.It was quickly determined that the cabin pressure had been increased slightly by the activation of the oxygen systems in the crew's flight suits, and the launch was conducted without further delay.The orbiter sustained only minor Space Shuttle thermal protection system tile damage, and the post-Challenger redesigned solid rocket booster segment joints showed no signs of leakage or overheating.During STS-26, Discovery became the first spacecraft to fly in space equipped with a VCU (Voice Control Unit), a computer capable of recognising and responding to human speech.It was concluded that weightless conditions caused a fundamental change in human speech, making the templates created prior to liftoff virtually useless on orbit.Discovery landed on Runway 17, Edwards Air Force Base, California, at 12:37:11 p.m. EDT on October 3, 1988, after a mission duration of approximately 4 days, 1 hour, 0 minute, and 11 seconds.The materials processing experiments included two Shuttle Student Involvement Projects, one on titanium grain formation and the other on controlling crystal growth with a membrane.Three life sciences experiments were conducted, including one on the aggregation of red blood cells, intended to help determine if microgravity can play a beneficial role in clinical research and medical diagnostic tests.[4] Kathryn D. Sullivan chose the wakeup music for STS-26, including a contribution from Robin Williams, who provided a pastiche of his Good Morning, Vietnam radio greeting.
TDRS-CSpace Transportation SystemTDRS-C deploymentCOSPAR IDSATCAT no.Space ShuttleDiscoveryFrederick H. HauckRichard O. CoveyJohn M. LoungeDavid C. HilmersGeorge D. NelsonKennedyLC-39BRockwell InternationalEdwardsGeocentric orbitLow Earth orbitPerigee altitudeApogee altitudeInclinationPeriodLoungeHilmersNelsonSpace Shuttle programSTS-51-LSTS-27Kennedy Space CenterFloridaSpace Shuttle Challenger disasterpressure suitsApollo 11STS-51-FSpacelab-2PositionSTS-61-FUlyssesSTS-41Roy D. Bridges Jr.Langley Research CenterCAPCOMLaunch Complex 39BSpace Shuttle thermal protection systemsolid rocket boosterKu-bandSCI SystemsHuntsville, Alabamaspeech recognitionCanadarmweightlessEdwards Air Force BaseCaliforniaTDRS-3Inertial Upper Stagegeosynchronous orbitPacific OceanHawaiilongitudeTDRS-1TDRS-Bproteinsenzymezero-gravitytitaniumcrystal growthlife sciencesred blood cellsTracking and Data Relay Satellite Systemloss of ColumbiaProject GeminiApollo 15Kathryn D. SullivanRobin WilliamsGood Morning, VietnamHawaiian IslandsJebel MarraList of human spaceflightsList of Space Shuttle missionsYoung, John W.public domainSullivan, Kathryn D.Wayback MachineSpace Shuttle DiscoverySTS-41-DSTS-51-ASTS-51-CSTS-51-DSTS-51-GSTS-51-ISTS-29STS-33STS-31STS-39STS-48STS-42STS-53STS-56STS-51STS-60STS-64STS-63STS-70STS-82STS-85STS-91STS-95STS-96STS-103STS-92STS-102STS-105STS-114STS-121STS-116STS-120STS-124STS-119STS-128STS-131STS-133Steven F. Udvar-Hazy CenterWashington, D.C.Destiny in SpaceU.S. Space Shuttle missions(crews)