Operation AXIOM: The Space Age—The 40th Anniversary of S.T.S.-8, Part II
1-5 September 1983: Truly, Brandenstein, Bluford, Gardner, & Thornton used the massive Payload Flight Test Article to gain experience with the Canadarm for future missions & continued research into space adaptation syndrome; other payloads included four Getaway Specials & 260,000 postal covers; after 98 orbits, the
Challenger landed at California's Edwards, the first Space Shuttle night landing.
Commentary: After the Challenger
safely touched down at Edwards, inspection of the recovered Solid Rocket Boosters revealed that the lefthand S.R.B. had been only seconds away from a catastrophic rupture which might have destroyed the Orbiter. The problem was traced to a bad batch of an ablative resin coating on the rocket nozzle, which had corroded far beyond safety parameters. S.T.S.-9 was postponed for a month until its S.R.B.s could be fitted with new nozzles, coated with a properly-functioning ablative resin.
Bonus! Space Age Song o' the Day: S.T.S.-8
Marco Beltrami & Buck Sanders, "Night Driving" from
Ford v. Ferrari: Original Score (Space Cadet Mike Pape Whiskey)
Semper exploro.
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