STS 41C

Description

STS 41-C was the fifth Challenger shuttle flight. On board were Robert Crippen, Frances Scobee, Terry Hart, George Nelson, and James Van Hoften.

This was the first direct ascent trajectory for Space Shuttle. Using the manned maneuvering unit, astronauts replaced an altitude control system and coronagraph/polarimeter electronics box in the Solar Max satellite while it remained in orbit. The Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) was deployed, carrying 57 experiments. It was left on orbit with the intention of retrieving during later mission. Other payloads included: IMAX camera; Radiation Monitoring Equipment (RME); Cinema 360; Shuttle Student Involvement Program (SSlP) experiment. The mission duration was 167 hours 40 minutes 7 seconds.