STS-84/Atlantis
The Shuttle mission goes fine-but Michael Foale and his Mir crewmates endure some harrowing moments
****UNDER CONSTRUCTION****
Prime Crew: Charles J. Precourt (Commander)
Eileen M. Collins (Pilot)
C. Michael Foale (MIR Upload/Mission Specialist)
Carlos I. Noriega (Mission Specialist)
Edward T. Lu (Mission Specialist)
Jean-Francois Clervoy (ESA; Mission Specialist)
Elana V. Kondakova (Cosmonaut; Mission Specialist)
Jerry M. Linenger (MIR Download/Mission Specialist)
Shuttle Orbiter: Atlantis (OV-104)
May 15, 1997
MIR Docking: 10:33 PM EDT, May 16, 1997
MIR Undocking: 9:04 PM EDT, May 21, 1997
Mission Duration: 9 days 5 hours 20 minutes 47 seconds
145 Orbits
Landing: May 24, 1997-Runway 33 (Shuttle Landing Facility), John F. Kennedy Space Center, FL
Seven astronauts and a cosmonaut comprise the crew for the STS-84 space flight, another in the series of Shuttle-Mir rendezvous missions. On the front row, left to right, are Jerry M. Linenger, Charles J. Precourt and C. Michael Foale. On the back row, from the left, are Jean-Francois Clervoy, Eileen M. Collins, Edward T. Lu, Elena V. Kondakova and Carlos I. Noriega. Precourt and Collins are the commander and pilot, respectively, with all others serving as mission specialists. Linenger is currently onboard Mir with both Mir-22 and Mir-23 crew members. Foale will replace Linenger when he joins the Mir-23 crew following the April launch of Atlantis and the subsequent docking with Mir. Clervoy represents the European Space Agency and Kondakova is a cosmonaut with the Russian Space Agency (RSA). NASA Photo.
March 20, 1997: Mission Specialists Elena Kondakova, at left, and Jean-Francois Clervoy pause for a photo outside SPACEHAB during the Crew Equipment Integration Test (CEIT) at the SPACEHAB Payload Processing Facility, under the watchful eyes of civilian contractor personnel-and Marvin the Martian ("Feel Lucky, Earthling?"). For convenience during this particular mission, the American astronauts have nicknamed their foriegn crewmates Elena and Jean-Francois "Betty Sue" and "Billy Bob," respectively. They even gave 'em nametags that said so. NASA Photo.
April 24, 1997: the sun rises on Atlantis. The Crawler hauls the vehicle out to Pad 39A on a beautiful Spring day. NASA Photo.
STS-84 crew members ride in and learn how to operate an M113 armored personnel carrier (which astronauts often refer to as "The Tank") during Terminal Countdown Test (TCDT) activities. In the front seat is Eileen Collins. George Hoggard, a training officer with KSC Fire Services, sits beside her on top of the vehicle. Directly behind Hoggard, from left, are Charles Precourt and Elena Kondakova (sitting). At the rear, from left, are Michael Foale and Jean-Francois Clervoy. NASA usually has several M113s at each pad. Use of the M113s dates back to the days of Project Mercury (although I don't know if they're the EXACT SAME M113s or not!), all through Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, ASTP, and now the Shuttle. Astronauts learn to drive them in case they have to do a pad abort and get away from a potentially toxic environment across rough terrain. Some astronauts have proven to be better Tank drivers than others, and the M113s have ended up in the ditches or swamps more than once over the years. NASA Photo.
May 11. Shuttle Pilot Eileen Collins arrives at the SLF in her T-38, ready to fly her second space mission. After this one, with two missions as a Shuttle Pilot in her logbooks, Eileen will be in line to command a Shuttle mission-the first woman to do so in the history of NASA. NASA Photo.
Video: Launch, docking & exchange of greetings (MPEG)
Video: The crews share a pleasant meal (MPEG)
Video: Michael Foale talks about the collision (MPEG)
Video: Michael Foale on the aftermath (MPEG)
Video: Michael discusses the modified hatch plate (MPEG)
From left, Jean-Francois "Billy Bob" Clervoy, Eileen Collins, Charles Precourt, Elena "Betty Sue" Kondakova, and Carlos Noriega. Not shown are Ed Lu and returning astronaut and Mir 23 crew member Jerry Linenger. You gotta love those hats. NASA Photo.
