October 26, 2020 - Standing Room Only

Standing Room Only  The STS-61A mission, launched 35 years ago this week, was a record-setting flight from the moment it lifted off. It was the first and only time in history that eight astronauts were launched into space at once. It was also the first American spaceflight in which scientific activities were controlled from outside the United States. Taking up most of Challenger’s cargo bay was the German-built Spacelab module, a reusable multi-disciplinary laboratory. Under the direction of the German Space Operations Center near Munich, Challenger’s crew split up into two teams and worked around the clock in 12-hour shifts. More than 75 experiments were conducted in the areas of physiological sciences, materials science, biology, and navigation. Challenger spent seven days in orbit.

Image credit: NASA

Weekly Calendar

October 26 - November 1, 2020

Holidays - Sky Events - Space History

 

Monday 26

1977: Fifth and final glide test of Space Shuttle Enterprise
2004: Cassini spacecraft completes first flyby of Titan

Tuesday 27

Neptune 4° north of Moon

1961: SA-1 launched, first Saturn rocket
2003: ISS Expedition 7 crew returns to Earth after 184 days in orbit

Wednesday 28

1971: Britain launches its first satellite
1974: Luna 23 launched
2009: Ares I-X test flight

Thursday 29

Mars 3° north of Moon

1964: First flight of Lunar Landing Research Vehicle
1987: Cosmos 1894 becomes 2,000th satellite
1991: Galileo flies past Gaspra
1998: STS-95 Discovery launched

Friday 30

Moon at apogee

1981: Venera 13 launched
1985: STS-61A Challenger launched
1997: First successful Ariane 5 rocket launched

Saturday 31

Halloween

Full Moon 9:49 AM ET
Uranus 3° north of Moon
Uranus at opposition

2005: Hubble Space Telescope discovers two new moons orbiting Pluto
2006: NASA announces SM4, the fifth and final Hubble servicing mission
2014: SpaceShipTwo crashes during atmospheric test flight, one pilot killed

Sunday 1

Daylight Saving Time ends 2:00 AM

1962: Mars 1 launched
1999: Area Code 321 goes into effect for areas near Kennedy Space Center