Mission 76
STS-76
1996-018A
Crew: 6 up/ 5 down CDR - Kevin P. Chilton
Plt - Richard A. Searfoss
MS 1 - Ronald M. Sega (PLC & IV 1)
MS 2 - Michael R. U. Clifford (EV 2)
MS 3 - Linda M. Godwin (EV 1)
MS 4 - Shannon W. Lucid (NASA 1) up
Launch 22 March 1996 @ 0313:04 EST
Orbital incl: 51.65
Max alt: 397.5 km.
Orbits: 144
Dur: 9:05:15:53
Landing: 31 March 1996 @ 0528:27 PST
Launch Info: Orbiter - Atlantis 104-16 Pad 39B KSC (MLP-2) - On 21 March, a
one day scrub was called, prior to tanking, due to high winds at the launch site. 13th night
launch. The flight was launched with a hydraulic leak in APU-3, which did not impact the
mission except in disallowing flight day (FD) extensions. Landed on concrete runway 22,
Edwards AFB. 45th EAFB landing. On 28 March the flight was cut by one day due to
weather concerns at KSC on 31 March and 1 April. On 30 March, following 2 morning
wave offs at the SLF (due to poor weather) a one day extension was granted. On
31 March the first KSC opportunity (TD due at 7 am EST) was waved off due to
thunderstorm activity at the SLF. Shannon Lucid (NASA-2) stayed on Mir, returning on
STS-79. John Blaha (NASA-3)served as Shannon W. Lucid's back-up. In orbit, the
Soyuz-TM 23 crew was Cdr. Yuri Onufriyenko & Flt. Eng. Yuri Usachyov - launched
21 February 1996.

MISSION PARTICULARS
Launch Window: 6 minutes, 59 seconds (3:13:04 - 3:20:03 am EST)
TAL Sites: Zaragoza, Spain (Alternates: Moron, Spain and Ben Guerir, Morocco)
AOA site: KSC (Alternates: WS)
Primary landing site: KSC/SLF (Scheduled: 7:42 am EST, 31 March)
Landing Speed: 204 knots (235 mph)
Landing rollout: 8,460' from main gear touchdown (2,185' from threshold)
Vehicle weight @ liftoff: 4,509,503 lbs
Orbiter weight @ liftoff: 246,345 lbs
Orbiter weight @ landing: 210,316 lbs
PAYLOADS
Cargo mass approx.: 14,888 lbs
Landing Weight: 12,058 lbs
Special mission kits: 3 EMU's, 2 SAFERS, SORG, MAR, PSA, MUP, ESC 4 CCD PLDB Cameras, 5 loaded cryo-tanks, OI-24 software (8th flight), TIPS, 6 Laptops, Mir-Shuttle VHF Radio, Laser Range Finders, Magnum Spotlight, Docking Lights, Exercycle, US-Russian EVA Tools and no RMS
PRIMARY PAYLOADS
SPACEHAB - Space habitat Module, Flight Unit-2 Total mass - 10,387 lbs. Includes 4,434 lbs of cargo for Mir (1,600 lbs of water, 1,629 lbs of science equipment, along with the Biorack: 1,938 lbs of Russian support equipment - includingdelivering and returning a Russian Gyrodyne unit, also 206 lbs of miscellaneous cargo. 135 items were exchanged between the craft. Total docked mass - 522,847 lbs.
EVA ACTIVITY
EDFT-4 (EVA Development Flight Test) activities
EVA-1 - 27 March Duration - 6 hours, 2 minutes First US EVA at Mir, crew attached 4 MEEP experiments to the new docking module. Godwin and Clifford (both 1st EVA's)
SECONDARY PAYLOADS
Payload Bay TRIS (Trapped Ions in Space) & MEEP (Mir Environmental Effects Payload)
Mid-deck SAREX-II (Config. M), KidSat and Shuttle/Mir Mission 03 Middeck Sci.
DOCKING OPERATIONS
Docking: 2134 EST, 23 March Hatch open - 2340 EST
Undocking: Hatch close - 0815 EST, 27 March 1908 EST, 28 March
SHUTTLE STACK COMPONENTS
SSME's: 2035 (1) - 3rd use, 2109 (2) - 16th use, 2019 (3) - 16th use. 104% at tower clear. 2035 & 2109 are Block I engines.
OMS Pods/Engines: LP-03/105 - Pod 20th use, Motor 18th use & RP-04/108 - Pod 16th use, Motor 20th use
ET: ET-77 (LWT-70)
SRB's: BI-079 (RSRM-46) - Set successfully recovered.
SHUTTLE STACK COMPONENTS
For a complete listing, see the Shuttle Rocket Booster page

Shuttle-Mir Docking 3 - Mir 3. First landing using the new Mission Control Room White
FCR
MISSION MILESTONES:
24 October 1995 ET-77 arrives on dock KSC
20 November 1995 OV-104 returns to OPF-1 following Mission-73/STS-74
5 February 1996 ET-77/SRB mate in VAB High Bay-3
19 February 1996 OV-104 rollover from OPF-1 to VAB High Bay for stacking overnight
28 February 1996 Stack rollout to Pad 39B, 1st motion 6:44 am, hard down7:30 pm (6 hour delay enroute due to crawler breakdown, to replace 2 shoes (cleats) that failed at a point just short of the pad perimeter fence)
29 February 1996 Spacelab payload installed into the orbiter while on hte pad (ODS installed earlier in the OPF)
6 March 1996 TCDT countdown dress rehearsal conducted with crew aboard the orbiter for the fina three hours of the simulated countdown (TCDT started at 8 am Tues., 5 March with T-0 at 11 am Wed., 6 March)
18 March 1996 "Call to stations" 43 hr countdown started at 2:00 am EST. Astronaut arrival at KSC.
22 March 1996 Launch
23 - 28 March 1996 Atlantis docks to the Mir station for 5 days of joint activities, and to drop off Shannon W. Lucid. Lucid is to return on STS-79 after 145 days in space.
31 March 1996 Landing at Edwards AFB, towed from the runway to the mate/demate facility - 5:35 to 7:23 pm PST
6 April 1996 Pilots Fitzhugh Fulton & Thomas McMurtry flying the SCA-905/OV-104 returned to Edwards AFB after 5 minutes of flight (at 5:00 pm PST) following a 'warnuing light' indication from the #3 (right inboard) engine.
8 Apri 1996 For safety concerns the SCA engine was replaced & full-thrust tested prior to the KSC return flight
11 April 1996 The SCA/OV104 combination made a refuelling stopover at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, Arizona and stayed overnight at Dyess AFB, Abilene, Texas. The SCA departed Dyess at 8:10 am 12 April, refuelling at Eglin AFB and landed on the KSC RW 15 at 1:41 pm returning to OPF-1 the next morning.
pre-shuttle missions. shuttle era missions.
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