The primary objectives of Mission STS-72 are to retrieve the Japanese Space Flyer Unit (SFU), and to deploy and later retrieve the Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology-Flyer (OAST-Flyer).
Among other highlights of the mission are two extravehicular activities (EVAs) or spacewalks to assess EVA tools, procedures and space suit performance, and to expand the ground and flight crew experience base in preparation for future Hubble Space Telescope servicing missions and International Space Station assembly and maintenance.
SFU, a free-flying experiment carrier which holds three automated laboratories containing materials processing and other science and technology investigations, was launched from Japan last March 18 by an H-II Expendable Launch Vehicle. It is scheduled to be retrieved on Flight Day 3 by the orbiter’s Remote Manipulator System (RMS) arm and stowed in Endeavour’s payload bay for return to Earth.
Carried by the Spartan free-flyer, the OAST-Flyer payload serves as a platform for four technology experiments. The OAST-Flyer will be deployed on Flight Day 4 and retrieved on Flight Day 6 after operating as a free-flyer for 40 to 50 hours. Endeavour’s robotic arm also will be used to retrieve and re-berth the Spartan carrier and the OAST-Flyer.
Other payloads include experiments to assess the physiological and anatomical changes in rodents exposed to microgravity, investigations in protein crystal growth, and an experiment to validate the performance of hardware designed to provide a nutrient delivery system for plant growth in microgravity.
* NOTE: Shuttle mission dates and other specifics are subject to change. Updates may be obtained by calling the following telephone numbers: Kennedy Space Center, Florida -- 407 867- 2314 or 867-4636; and NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. -- 202 358-4184.
Two-time space flyer Brian Duffy (Col., USAF) will command the six-member crew. A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and the Air Force Test Pilot School, he was director of F-15 tests at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. An astronaut since 1986, Duffy served as pilot on STS-45 in 1992 and on STS-57 in 1993.
Pilot Brent W. Jett Jr. (Lt. Cmdr., USN) graduated first in his Class of 1981 at the U.S. Naval Academy, and earned a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. The former fighter pilot and project test pilot was selected by NASA as an astronaut in 1992. This is his first flight.
Mission Specialist Leroy Chiao will make his second trip into space on STS-72. He has a doctorate in chemical engineering, and formerly worked for private corporations where he was involved in process, manufacturing and engineering research on advanced aerospace materials. He joined NASA in 1990 and flew as a mission specialist on STS-65 in 1994.
The other three mission specialists are spaceflight rookies.
Winston E. Scott (Cmdr., USN) has a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. The former Navy research and development project pilot also was an associate instructor of electrical engineering at two Florida colleges. He was selected by NASA to be an astronaut in 1992.
Daniel T. Barry has a doctorate in electrical engineering/computer science and a doctorate in medicine. He was an assistant professor in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and in the Bioengineering Program at the University of Michigan. He joined NASA in 1992.
Koichi Wakata was selected as a National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) astronaut in 1992, and reported to NASA’s Johnson Space Center for training later that year. Wakata formerly worked for Japan Airlines as a structural engineer. He has a master’s degree in applied mechanics.
The energy released by the three main engines on each orbiter is equivalent to the output of 23 Hoover Dams.