Space Shuttle Discovery

Discovery OV-103
Space Shuttle Discovery launches from NASA Kennedy Space Center Launch Pad 39A on mission STS-124.
OV designation	OV-103
Country	United States
Contract award	January 29, 1979
Named after	Discovery (1602), HMS Discovery (1774), HMS Discovery (1874), RRS Discovery (1901)
Status	Retired, on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia^[1]
First flight	STS-41-D August 30, 1984 – September 5, 1984
Last flight	Piggy back on a 747 to Washington DC April 17, 2012
Number of missions	39
Crew members	252^[2]
Time spent in space	365 days, 22 hours, 39 minutes, 33 seconds
Distance travelled	148,221,675 mi (238,539,663 km)^[3]
Satellites deployed	31 (including Hubble Space Telescope)
Mir dockings	1^[3]
ISS dockings	13^[3]

Space Shuttle Discovery (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) is one of the retired orbiters of the Space Shuttle program of NASA, the space agency of the United States,^[4] and was operational from its maiden flight, STS-41-D on August 30, 1984, until its final landing during STS-133 on March 9, 2011. Discovery has flown more than any other spacecraft having completed 39 successful missions in over 27 years of service.^[5]
In 1984, Discovery became the third operational orbiter following Columbia and Challenger,^[6] and made its final touchdown at Kennedy Space Center on March 9, 2011 at 10:57:17 CST,^[7] having spent a cumulative total of one full year (365 days) in space. Discovery has performed both research and International Space Station (ISS) assembly missions. Discovery also flew the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit. Discovery was the first operational shuttle to be retired, followed by Endeavour and Atlantis.

History

Discovery rollout ceremony in October 1983

The spacecraft takes its name from four British ships of exploration named Discovery, primarily HMS Discovery, one of the ships commanded by Captain James Cook during his third and final major voyage from 1776 to 1779.
Others include

Henry Hudson's Discovery, which he used in 1610–1611 to search for a Northwest Passage. This ship had previously been used in the 1607 founding of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in what was to become the United States;
HMS Discovery, one of the ships which took Captain George Nares' British Arctic Expedition of 1875–1876 to the North Pole; and
RRS Discovery, a Royal Geographical Society research vessel which, under the command of Captain Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton, was the main ship of the 1901–1904 "Discovery Expedition" to Antarctica^[8] which is still preserved as a museum in Dundee, Scotland.

Discovery was the shuttle that launched the Hubble Space Telescope. The second and third Hubble service missions were also conducted by Discovery. It has also launched the Ulysses probe and three TDRS satellites. Discovery had been twice chosen as the "Return To Flight" Orbiter, first in 1988 after the 1986 Challenger disaster, and then for the twin "Return To Flight" missions in July 2005 and July 2006 after the 2003 Columbia disaster. Discovery also carried Project Mercury astronaut John Glenn, who was 77 at the time, back into space during STS-95 on October 29, 1998, making him the oldest person to go into space.^[9]
Had the planned STS-62-A mission from Vandenberg Air Force Base in 1986 for the United States Department of Defense gone ahead, Discovery would have flown it. Its final mission, STS-133, landed on March 9, 2011, in Kennedy Space Center, Florida. After decommissioning and delivery, the spacecraft is displayed in Virginia at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, an annex of the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum.^[1]

Construction milestones

Date	Milestone^[10]
1979 January 29	Contract Award to Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division in Downey, California
1979 August 27	Start long lead fabrication of Crew Module
1980 June 20	Start fabrication lower fuselage
1980 November 10	Start structural assembly of aft-fuselage
1980 December 8	Start initial system installation aft fuselage
1981 March 2	Start fabrication/assembly of payload bay doors
1981 October 26	Start initial system installation, crew module, Downey
1982 January 4	Start initial system installation upper forward fuselage
1982 March 16	Midfuselage on dock, Palmdale, California
1982 March 30	Elevons on dock, Palmdale
1982 April 30	Wings arrive at Palmdale from Grumman
1982 April 30	Lower forward fuselage on dock, Palmdale
1982 July 16	Upper forward fuselage on dock, Palmdale
1982 August 5	Vertical stabilizer on dock, Palmdale
1982 September 3	Start of Final Assembly
1982 October 15	Body flap on dock, Palmdale
1983 January 11	Aft fuselage on dock, Palmdale
1983 February 25	Complete final assembly and closeout installation, Palmdale
1983 February 28	Start initial subsystems test, power-on, Palmdale
1983 May 13	Complete initial subsystems testing
1983 July 26	Complete subsystems testing
1983 August 12	Completed Final Acceptance
1983 October 16	Rollout from Palmdale
1983 November 5	Overland transport from Palmdale to Edwards Air Force Base
1983 November 9	Delivery to Kennedy Space Center
1984 June 2	Flight Readiness Firing
1984 August 30	First Flight (STS-41-D)

Upgrades and features

Discovery rocketing into space, just after booster separation.

Discovery weighed some 6,870 pounds (3,120 kg) less than Columbia when it was brought into service due to optimizations determined during the construction and testing of Enterprise, Columbia and Challenger.^[9]
Beginning in late 1995, the orbiter underwent a nine-month Orbiter Maintenance Down Period (OMDP) in Palmdale California. This included outfitting the vehicle with a 5th set of cryogenic tanks and an external airlock to support missions to the International Space Station. It can be attached to the top of specialized aircraft and did so in June 1996 when it returned to the Kennedy Space Center, and later in April 2012 when sent to the Udvar-Hazy Center, riding piggy-back on a modified Boeing 747.^[9]
After STS-105, Discovery became the first of the orbiter fleet to undergo Orbiter Major Modification (OMM) period at the Kennedy Space Center. Work began in September 2002 to prepare the vehicle for Return to Flight. This included scheduled upgrades and additional safety modifications.^[9] Discovery is 6 pounds (2.7 kg) heavier than Atlantis and 363 pounds (165 kg) heavier than Endeavour.^[2]

Decommissioning and display

Discovery riding piggy-back on SCA N905NA on the last flyover of the National Mall at around 10:15 AM EDT, during its 11:05 AM landing at Dulles airport on April 17, 2012, and on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.^[11]

Discovery was decommissioned on March 9, 2011.^[12]^[13]

Enterprise and Discovery exchanged at the Udvar-Hazy center of the National Air and Space Museum

NASA offered Discovery to the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum for public display and preservation, after a month-long decontamination process,^[14] as part of the national collection.^[15]^[16]^[17] Discovery replaced Enterprise in the Smithsonian's display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.^[18]^[19]^[20] Discovery was transported to Washington Dulles International Airport on April 17, 2012, and was transferred to the Udvar-Hazy on April 19 where a formal welcome ceremony was held. Afterwards, at around 5: 30 pm, Discovery was rolled to its "final wheels stop" in the Udvar Hazy Center. To this day, she's being displayed like she just landed from space.^[21]^[22]

Flights

Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) deployed

By its last mission, Discovery had flown 149 million miles (238 million km) in 39 missions, completed 5,830 orbits, and spent 365 days in orbit in over 27 years.^[23] Discovery is the Orbiter Fleet leader, having flown more flights than any other Orbiter Shuttle in the fleet, including four in 1985 alone. Discovery flew all three "return to flight" missions after the Challenger and Columbia disasters: STS-26 in 1988, STS-114 in 2005, and STS-121 in 2006. Discovery flew the third to the last mission of the Space Shuttle program, STS-133, having launched on (NET) February 24, 2011. Endeavour flew STS-134 and Atlantis performed STS-135, NASA's last Space Shuttle mission. On February 24, 2011, Space Shuttle Discovery launched from Kennedy Space Center's Launch Complex 39-A to begin its final orbital flight.^[24]
Notable missions:

STS-41-D: Space Shuttle Discovery's maiden spaceflight with the second American woman in space, Judith Resnik
STS-51-D: Carried first incumbent United States member of Congress into space, Senator Jake Garn (R–Utah)
STS-26: First "Return to Flight" after Challenger disaster (STS-51-L)
STS-31: Launch of the Hubble Space Telescope
STS-48: Launch of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite
STS-60: First Russian launched in an American spacecraft (Sergei Krikalev)
STS-63: First female shuttle pilot Eileen Collins.^[2]
STS-95: Second flight of John Glenn, who has been 77 at that time, the oldest man in space and third incumbent member of Congress to enter space
STS-96: First Orbiter Shuttle and first mission flight to dock with the International Space Station^[2]
STS-92: The 100th Space Shuttle mission
STS-114: Second "Return to Flight" missions after Columbia disaster (STS-107)
STS-116: First night time launch of a Space Shuttle since the Columbia disaster. Last Shuttle launch from LC-39B
STS-131: Longest mission for this Orbiter with 15 days to its credit
STS-133: Final mission for this Space Shuttle

Flights listing

#	Date	Designation	Notes	Length of journey
1	August 30, 1984	STS-41-D	First Discovery mission: Judith Resnik became second American woman in Space. Three communications satellites were put into orbit, including LEASAT F2.	6 days, 00 hours, 56 minutes, 04 seconds
2	November 8, 1984	STS-51-A	Launched two and rescued two communications satellites including LEASAT F1.	7 days, 23 hours, 44 minutes, 56 seconds
3	January 24, 1985	STS-51-C	Launched DOD Magnum ELINT satellite.	3 days, 01 hours, 33 minutes, 23 seconds-
4	April 12, 1985	STS-51-D	Launched two communications satellites including LEASAT F3.	6 days, 23 hours, 55 minutes, 23 seconds
5	June 17, 1985	STS-51-G	Launched two communications satellites, Sultan Salman al-Saud becomes first Saudi Arabian in space.	7 days, 01 hours, 38 minutes, 52 seconds
6	August 27, 1985	STS-51-I	Launched two communications satellites including LEASAT F4. Recovered, repaired, and redeployed LEASAT F3.	7 days, 02 hours, 17 minutes, 42 seconds
7	September 29, 1988	STS-26	Return to flight after Space Shuttle Challenger disaster, launched TDRS.	4 days, 01 hours, 00 minutes, 11 seconds
8	March 13, 1989	STS-29	Launched TDRS.	4 days, 23 hours, 38 minutes, 52 seconds
9	November 22, 1989	STS-33	Launched DOD Magnum ELINT satellite.	5 days, 00 hours, 06 minutes, 49 seconds
10	April 24, 1990	STS-31	Launch of Hubble Space Telescope (HST).	5 days, 01 hours, 16 minutes, 06 seconds
11	October 6, 1990	STS-41	Launch of Ulysses.	4 days, 02 hours, 10 minutes, 04 seconds
12	April 28, 1991	STS-39	Launched DOD Air Force Program-675 (AFP-675) satellite.	8 days, 07 hours, 22 minutes, 23 seconds
13	September 12, 1991	STS-48	Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS).	5 days, 08 hours, 27 minutes, 38 seconds
14	January 22, 1992	STS-42	International Microgravity Laboratory-1 (IML-1).	8 days, 01 hours, 14 minutes, 44 seconds
15	December 2, 1992	STS-53	Department of Defense payload.	7 days, 07 hours, 19 minutes, 47 seconds
16	April 8, 1993	STS-56	Atmospheric Laboratory (ATLAS-2).	9 days, 06 hours, 08 minutes, 24 seconds
17	September 12, 1993	STS-51	Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS).	9 days, 20 hours, 11 minutes, 11 seconds
18	February 3, 1994	STS-60	First Shuttle-Mir mission; Wake Shield Facility (WSF).	8 days, 07 hours, 09 minutes, 22 seconds
19	September 9, 1994	STS-64	LIDAR In-Space Technology Experiment (LITE).	10 days, 22 hours, 49 minutes, 57 seconds
20	February 3, 1995	STS-63	Rendezvous with Mir space station.	8 days, 06 hours, 29 minutes, 36 seconds
21	July 13, 1995	STS-70	7th Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS).	8 days, 22 hours, 20 minutes, 05 seconds
22	February 11, 1997	STS-82	Servicing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) (HSM-2).	9 days, 23 hours, 38 minutes, 09 seconds
23	August 7, 1997	STS-85	Cryogenic Infrared Spectrometers and Telescopes (CRISTA).	11 days, 20 hours, 28 minutes, 07 seconds
24	June 2, 1998	STS-91	Final Shuttle/Mir Docking Mission.	9 days, 19 hours, 55 minutes, 01 seconds
25	October 29, 1998	STS-95	SPACEHAB, second flight of John Glenn, Pedro Duque becomes first Spaniard in space.	8 days, 21 hours, 44 minutes, 56 seconds
26	May 27, 1999	STS-96	Resupply mission for the International Space Station.	9 days, 19 hours, 13 minutes, 57 seconds
27	December 19, 1999	STS-103	Servicing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) (HSM-3A).	7 days, 23 hours, 11 minutes, 34 seconds
28	October 11, 2000	STS-92	International Space Station Assembly Flight (carried and assembled the Z1 truss); 100th Shuttle mission.	12 days, 21 hours, 43 minutes, 47 seconds
29	March 8, 2001	STS-102	International Space Station crew rotation flight (Expedition 1 and Expedition 2)	12 days, 19 hours, 51 minutes, 57 seconds
30	August 10, 2001	STS-105	International Space Station crew and supplies delivery (Expedition 2 and Expedition 3)	11 days 21 hours, 13 minutes, 52 seconds
31	July 26, 2005	STS-114	"Return To Flight" mission since Space Shuttle Columbia disaster; International Space Station (ISS) supplies delivery, new safety procedures testing and evaluation, Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM) Raffaello.	13 days, 21 hours, 33 minutes, 00 seconds
32	July 4, 2006	STS-121	Second "Return To Flight" mission since the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster; International Space Station (ISS) supplies delivery, test new safety and repair techniques.	12 days, 18 hours, 37 minutes, 54 seconds
33	December 9, 2006	STS-116	ISS crew rotation and assembly (carries and assembles the P5 truss segment); Last flight to launch on pad 39-B; First night launch since Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.	12 days, 20 hours, 44 minutes, 16 seconds
34	October 23, 2007	STS-120	ISS crew rotation and assembly (carries and assembles the Harmony module).	15 days, 02 hours, 23 minutes, 55 seconds
35	May 31, 2008	STS-124	ISS crew rotation and assembly (carries and assembles the Kibō JEM PM module).	13 days, 18 hours, 13 minutes, 07 seconds
36	March 15, 2009	STS-119	International Space Station crew rotation and assembly of a fourth starboard truss segment (ITS S6) and a fourth set of solar arrays and batteries. Also replaced a failed unit for a system that converts urine to drinking water.	12 days, 19 hours, 29 minutes, 33 seconds
37	August 28, 2009	STS-128	International Space Station crew rotation and ISS resupply using the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module. Also carried the C.O.L.B.E.R.T treadmill named after Stephen Colbert	13 days 20 hours, 54 minutes, 40 seconds
38	April 5, 2010	STS-131	ISS resupply using the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module. The mission also marked the 1st time that 4 women were in space & the 1st time that 2 Japanese astronauts were together in space station^[25]	15 days 2 hours, 47 minutes 11 seconds‡
39	February 24, 2011	STS-133	The mission launched at 4:53 pm EST on February 24, was carrying the Permanent Multipurpose Module (PMM) Leonardo, the ELC-4 and Robonaut 2 to the ISS.^[26] This was the final mission for the Space Shuttle Discovery.	12 days 19 hours, 4 minutes, 50 seconds

‡ Longest shuttle mission for Discovery
– shortest shuttle mission for Discovery

Mission and tribute insignias

!colspan=8| NASA Orbiter Tribute for Space Shuttle Discovery |-
!colspan=8|

Gallery


The launch of STS-41-D, Discovery’s first mission.	STS-121 launched on Independence Day, the first and the only shuttle to launch on July 4.	STS-119 on the morning of March 11, 2009.	Discovery sits atop a modified Boeing 747 as it touches down.	Discovery lands after her first flight, STS-41-D.

Discovery performing the Rendezvous pitch maneuver prior to docking with the International Space Station.	The Space Shuttle Discovery soon after landing	Modified Boeing 747 carrying Discovery.	STS-124 comes to a close as Discovery lands at the Kennedy Space Center.	Discovery's final touchdown on Kennedy Space Center's runway, concluding the STS-133 mission and Discovery's career as an operating Orbiter Shuttle.