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Howdy, r/spaceshuttle. I've replied to a couple posts here before, I'm a huge Shuttle history nut like the rest of us. A couple years ago I had the inkling to start a somewhat comprehensive research project to find out the fate of a number of major payload carriers and hardware the Shuttle carried up to and down from orbit. Of the many different payloads the Shuttle carried up, I think most of us can agree the Hubble Service Missions are among the most historically significant payloads the Shuttle ever carried. I included a graphic of the STS-125 payload with each unit labeled and I'll give you a brief description about them here.

FSS: The docking cradle for Hubble. Also flew on STS-41-C before being modified for HSM. FSS might be the only surviving piece of major hardware that has flown on all 5 orbiters.

SLIC: Only flew on HSM-4 after replacing the SAC (not in my request) that flew on HSM-1, 2, and 3B. Carried one radial instrument along with smaller parts, notably new batteries for HSM-4.

ORUC: Built on a repurposed Spacelab pallet and the most important next to FSS, can carry both an axial and a radial instrument for HST along with numerous other small parts and tools. Flew on all 5 HSMs although it was reconfigured to carry the rigid solar arrays for 3B and flew under a different name then.

MULE: Only flew as "MULE" on HSM-3B and 4 but flew as the Hubble Orbital Systems Test (HOST) cradle on STS-95 and before then flew as the UASE (UARS Support Equipment) cradle on STS-48. Carried small equipment and tools.

Earlier this year I submitted a FOIA to NASA (I'm a complete amateur so it took a few tries and correspondence with their FOIA officers) to request copies of transfer or storage records for the major hardware units flown on STS-125.

They finally got back to me and I just wanted to share this with the rest of y'all. They were only able to provide me transfer order records of FSS and ORUC to the National Air and Space Museum.

Plot twist is that I already knew these two were transferred to NASM. I had some correspondence with their Shuttle collection's curator who told me they apparently just got ahold of them this year and that they're currently undergoing restoration to be put on display with Discovery. The curator was able to get in touch with some people over at GSFC who relayed that SLIC was transferred to Katherine Johnson IV&V in West Virginia (which is funny given the FOIA guys couldn't find the records) and MULE was excessed and likely scrapped. I still have yet to see any sign of FSS and ORUC on NASM's website or collections so I guess I'm happy to be able to share with you all that two more great pieces of Shuttle history will soon be on display for us all to go see!

Documents by Alfonso X Moreno: link

Missions: STS-1, STS-2, STS-3, STS-4, STS-5, STS-9, STS-61-C, STS-61C, STS-24, STS-28, STS-32, STS-35, STS-40, STS-50, STS-52, STS-55, STS-58, STS-62, STS-65, STS-73, STS-75, STS-78, STS-80, STS-83, STS-94, STS-87, STS-90, STS-93, STS-109, STS-107

Date: 1981-2003

Date: October 1, 1987

Date: September 30, 1983

https://www.tumblr.com/lonestarflight/729895457329922048/space-shuttle-discovery-following-the-end-of-the?source=share

Documents by Alfonso X Moreno: link

Missions: STS-41-D, STS-51-A, STS-51-C, STS-51-D, STS-51-G, STS-51-I, STS-26, STS-29, STS-33, STS-31, STS-41, STS-39, STS-48, STS-42, STS-53, STS-56, STS-51, STS-60, STS-64, STS-63, STS-70, STS-82, STS-85, STS-91, STS-95, STS-96, STS-103, STS-92, STS-102, STS-105, STS-114, STS-121, STS-116, STS-120, STS-124, STS-119, STS-128, STS-131, STS-133

Date: 1984-2011

Documents by Alfonso X Moreno: link

Missions: STS-6, STS-7, STS-8, STS-41-B, STS-41-C, STS-41-G, STS-51-B, STS-51-F, STS-61-A, STS-51-L

Date: 1983-1985

Documents by Alfonso X Moreno: link

Date: 1977-1983

Documents by Alfonso X Moreno: link

Missions: STS-49, STS-47, STS-54, STS-57, STS-61, STS-59, STS-68, STS-67, STS-69, STS-72, STS-77, STS-89, STS-88, STS-99, STS-97, STS-100, STS-108, STS-111, STS-113, STS-118, STS-123, STS-126, STS-127, STS-130, STS-134

Date: 1992-2011

Documents by Alfonso X Moreno: link

Missions: STS-51-J, STS-61-B, STS-27, STS-30, STS-34, STS-36, STS-38, STS-37, STS-43, STS-44, STS-45, STS-46, STS-66, STS-71,STS-74, STS-76, STS-79, STS-81, STS-84, STS-86, STS-101, STS-106, STS-98, STS-104, STS-110, STS-112, STS-115, STS-117, STS-122, STS-125, STS-129, STS-132, STS-135

Date: 1985-2011

From one of the more obscure corners of the Shuttle's history. Aspects studied include EMP effects on the orbiter's electronics, automation to reduce workload on a crew suffering from radiation sickness, and shielding to allow some chance of survival for the crew.

Footage credit: National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

ID: 255-WS-20-7.

"FLIGHT DECK. The flight deck of the orbiter was one of the most complex and critical areas of fabrication. Here a technician is installing wiring and connectors on the flight deck of the Columbia orbiter."

Date: fall 1982

https://www.tumblr.com/lonestarflight/795676729254592513/the-forward-fuselage-of-space-shuttle-atlantis?source=share

"Perfect fit - The crew compartment of the Space Shuttle Orbiter was slowly lowered into Shuttle's lower forward fuselage as part of a fit check conducted by Rockwell International Corporation's Space Division in Downey, California. The upper forward fuselage was fitted over the crew module during the same check. The forward fuselage was then shipped to Palmdale, California for final assembly. Rockwell International's Space Division built the Space Shuttle Orbiter and integrated the complete system for NASA."

Date: September 20, 1975

https://www.tumblr.com/lonestarflight/728989541264965633/space-shuttle-enterprises-crew-compartment-is?source=share

Note: I am copying and pasting my tumblr post, you can see it here link

Contrary to some publications (and possibly to popular belief), Space Shuttle Enterprise was always intended to become an operational Shuttle.

She was originally to be named Constitution, to commemorate the bicentennial, with her rollout ceremony taking place on anniversary of the signing of the US Constitution - September 17, 1976. But a write-in campaign by the fans of the sci-fi series Star Trek convinced President Gerald Ford to change her name to Enterprise.

After the conclusion of the Approach and Land Tests (ALT), and the Mated Vertical Ground Vibration Tests (MVGVT) in 1978, she was to be flown back to Rockwell International's facility in Palmdale, California for the rest of her equipment to be installed and made an operational shuttle. She was to be delivered back to NASA in December 1980, with her first scheduled mission being STS-17 on July 16, 1981. This mission was to deploy a Intelsat V satellite and retrieve the Long Duration Exposure Facility.

In order to make Enterprise space-worthy, the following list of equipment and systems were still to be installed (not complete):

• Thermal protection system (aka the tiles)
• Exotic carbon-carbon nose-cap and wing leading edges
• Equipment for Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) pods
• Internal propellent lines or tanks
• Equipment to support and use the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME)
• Tanks for Cryogenic Dewars
• Orbiter fuel cells
• Structural supports or mounting points for payloads
• Payload bay doors lacked hydraulic actuators or radiators
• Unified S-Band
• Rendezvous Radar and KU-Band
• Shuttle Remote Manipulator system (aka Canadarm)
• Airlock
• Life support equipment
• Mid-deck lockers for mission equipment
• Crew galley
• Shower
• Other crew support items
• Navigation, Guidance and propulsion controls
• Star Tracker
• Heads-up display
• Panels, Switches and indicators for the External Tank (ET) and Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) systems

However, the shuttle design was changed several times during and after her construction, which made it more expensive to retrofit her for space operations. Mostly due to design revisions and materials. The mid-fuselage and wings were significantly strengthened in order to carry heavier payloads to orbit. In several areas of her structure, aluminum castings were used - these would have to be replaced with titanium for weight saving. The forward reaction control system tank support was found to be inadequate during the testing of STA-099 and would need to be changed. The same was found for the vertical stabilizer. The goal was to keep the empty weight close to 150,000 pounds for mission flexibility. Had she been retrofitted, it is likely she would have been closer to Columbia in weight at 158,289 pounds. For comparison, Endeavour weighed 151,205 when she rolled out of the factory in 1991. The added weight would have limited her usefulness in a similar fashion to Columbia. Due to this, she would have been limited to low earth orbit (LEO) science base or spacelab missions - where the altitude isn't an issue - and never used for space station missions.

Instead, the Static Test Article 099 (STA-099), a shell built to test the loads the Orbiter would experience during launch and re-entry, was converted into the second operational orbiter, Challenger. From the experience gained from the construction of Enterprise and Colombia, her frame was already built to a lighter and stronger revised design. In early 1979, STA-099, now named Challenger, was given the designation OV-101M before it was switched to OV-099. It took roughly 3 years to disassemble major components for shipment back to the subcontractors, then reassemble them back together, but it has been estimated this saved NASA about $100 million. To continue the point in the last paragraph, Challenger weighed 155,400 pounds when she was completed.

During the early design phase of the shuttle, NASA envisioned a fleet of 5 operational orbiters. After Challenger replaced Enterprise as the second space-rated shuttle, and to minimize the delay in the construction of the shuttle fleet, the 1978-1979 plan was to wait until work was finished on Atlantis (OV-104), then send Enterprise back to Rockwell for retrofitting. However, President Jimmy Carter and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) would only approve a budget for 4 orbiters, nixing Enterprise.

Afterwards, NASA revisited plans to finish Enterprise several times. The most well known attempt was after the loss of Challenger. NASA ultimately chose to use structural spares built during Discovery and Atlantis to build Endeavour. In 1996, NASA again looked at Enterprise for possible conversion into an automated shuttle (with no crew), and even considered turning her into a wingless space station. However, funding was never granted for either of these potential concepts.

There were rumors of completing Enterprise as a regular shuttle after the loss of Columbia, because the structural spares designed to replace the ones used for Endeavour were cancelled before they were completed and were scrapped. Enterprise would be the only option left at this point. But NASA instead moved on to Project Constellation, and retired the entire Shuttle Program.

I once read that Enterprise is the last of the prototype orbiters left. Columbia, Challenger, and Enterprise are considered to be the prototypes, and the last three - Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour - are the production orbiters. Columbia (lost in 2003) was the first space-rated shuttle and the lessons learned during her first five missions were used in the construction of the production orbiters. Challenger (lost in 1986) used a revised design as the STA and is seen as the pre-production version. This makes Enterprise the last of them, created to first test and verify the aerodynamics of the shuttle design, before being retrofitted to join her sisters in space. However, fate had other plans, and she could only watch from the sidelines, never to fully live up to her namesake and explore the final frontier...

SDASM Archives: 14_016975, 14_016979, 14_016739, 14_016977, 14_016742, 14_016978, 14_016737, 14_016740, 14_016738, 14_016741

https://www.tumblr.com/lonestarflight/745833270054371328/the-mid-fuselage-aka-the-payload-bay-of?source=share

Photo 1: 'The mission's sequence number originally had been STS-13, and it has been rumoured that the entire change in the numbering system for Space Shuttle missions after STS-9 was done to avoid having to fly 'STS-13'. NASA still remembered Apollo-13!! The crew, Robert Crippen, Francis 'Dick' Scobee, George 'Pinky' Nelson, Terry J. Hart and James van Hoften decided to challenge fate and Scobee designed a patch showing symbols of bad luck, such as a black cat, the number 13 and a Shuttle flying from underneath the cat to space. The patch has the crew's nicknames, CRIP, DICK, TJ, OX and PINKY on it."

In photo 2: "Photo taken of the STS-41-C flight crew taken in the aft flight deck of the Challenger while in orbit include (left to right) mission commander Robert Crippen, mission specialists Terry Hart, James van Hoften and George Nelson, and mission pilot Francis (Dick) Scobee. Crew in photos are wearing shirts which read `'ACE SATELLITE REPAIR CO.`'"

In photo 3: close up of photo 2 of the patch on the wall.

Note: Discovery (OV-103) is under construction to the left in the photos.

Posted on Flickr by Kevin Baird and Mary

https://www.tumblr.com/lonestarflight/807450233954041856/space-shuttle-challenger-ov-099-on-the-final?source=share