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Bolden, Administrator Blog Speeches & Testimony Lori B. Garver, Deputy Administrator Facebook | Twitter Speeches & Testimony NASA Org Structure | Leadership GalleryNASA LOCATIONS Find a Center or Facility Visiting NASA NASA Home | Missions | Space Shuttle | Shuttle Missions | Archives SendBookmarkPrint MissionsMissions HighlightsCurrent MissionsCurrent Missions Space Shuttle Shuttle Missions Archives Behind the Scenes Launch & Landing Multimedia News & Media Resources Vehicle Structure Past MissionsFuture MissionsLaunch ScheduleMission CalendarSpace ShuttleMission ArchivesText SizeSTS-2 Mission: Second Shuttle Mission/Office of Space and Terrestrial Applications-1 (OSTA-1) Space Shuttle: Columbia Launch Pad: 39A Launched: Nov. 12, 1981 at 10:09:59 a.m. EST Launch Weight: 320,708 pounds Landing Site: Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Landing: Nov. 14, 1981 at 1:23:11 p.m. PST Runway: 23 Rollout Distance: 7,711 feet Rollout Time: 53 seconds Revolution: 37 Mission Duration: 2 days, 6 hours, 13 minutes and 12 seconds Returned to KSC: Nov. 25, 1981 Orbit Altitude: 157 nautical miles Orbit Inclination: 38.0 degrees Miles Traveled: 1.075 million Crew Members Image above: STS-2 Crew photo with Commander Joe H. Engle, Pilot Richard H. Truly and back up crew members, Thomas K. Mattingly II and Henry W. Hartsfield, Jr. Image Credit: NASA Mission Objectives Demonstrate safe re-launch and safe return of the orbiter and crew. Verify the combined performance of the entire shuttle vehicle - orbiter, solid rocket boosters and external tank. Payloads included the Orbital Flight Test Pallet consisting of the Measurement of Air Pollution from Satellite (MAPS) experiment, the Shuttle Multispectral Infrared Radiometer (SMIRR) experiment, the Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR-A) experiment, the Features Identification and Location Experiment (FILE) and the Ocean Color Experiment (OCE). Also included was the 11,048 lb. Development Flight Instrumentation (DFI) pallet, the Aerodynamic Coefficient Identification Package (ACIP), the Induced Environment Contamination Monitor (IECM) and the 5,395 lb. Office of Space and Terrestrial Applications Pallet (OSTA-1). Mission Highlights Launch originally set for Oct. 9 was rescheduled when a nitrogen tetroxide spill occurred during loading of the forward reaction control system. The launch scheduled for Nov. 4 delayed and then scrubbed when the countdown computer called for hold in the count due to an apparent low reading on fuel cell oxygen tank pressures. During the hold, high oil pressures were discovered in two of three auxiliary power units (APUs) that operate hydraulic system. APU gear boxes needed to be flushed and filters replaced, forcing the launch to reschedule. The launch on Nov. 12 delayed two hours, 40 minutes to replace the multiplexer/demultiplexer and additional nine minutes, 59 seconds to review systems status. Modifications of the water sound suppression system at the pad to absorb the solid rocket booster overpressure wave during launch were effective -- no tiles were lost and only 12 were damaged. The planned five-day mission was cut nearly three days due to failure of one of three fuel cells that produce electricity and drinking water, but 90 percent of mission objectives achieved, including first time remote manipulator system tests. Mission scientists were satisfied with data received from Office of Space and Terrestrial Applications-1 (OSTA-1) Earth observation experiments mounted on Spacelab pallet in payload bay. NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center Related Sites > NASA's Orbiter Fleet > NASA's Launch Schedule > Shuttle Reference Manual > Shuttle Archives › Back To Top NASA HomePage Last Updated: March 14, 2008 Page Editor: Jeanne Ryba NASA Official: Brian DunbarNASA Information on the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Budgets, Strategic Plans and Accountability Reports Equal Employment Opportunity Data Posted Pursuant to the No Fear Act Information-Dissemination Policies and Inventories Freedom of Information Act Privacy Policy & Important Notices NASA Advisory Council Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel Inspector General Hotline Office of the Inspector General NASA Communications Policy Contact NASA Site Map USA.gov ExpectMore.gov Open Government at NASA Help and Preferences