Primary mission objectives were deployment of a communications satellite and the retrieval of NASA's Long Duration Facility. Secondary payloads included: Protein Crystal Growth, Fluid Experiment Apparatus, American Flight Echocardiograph, Latitude/Longitude Locator and the IMAX camera.!
Front row, left to right: Commander Daniel Brandenstein, DOB: 1/17/43, Background: Capt., USN. Chief of the Astronaut Office at JSC. Pilot on STS-8. Commander on 51-G and STS-49. Education: B.S. in mathematics and physics.
Pilot James Wetherbee, DOB: 11/27/52, Background: Cmdr., USN. Commander of STS-52. Education: B.S. in aerospace engineering.
Back row, left to right: Mission Specialist Marsha Ivins, DOB: 4/15/51, Background: NASA engineer in flight simulation. Mission specialist on STS-46. Education: B.S. in aerospace engineering.
Mission Specialist David Low, DOB: 2/19/56, Background: Flew as mission specialist on STS-43. Education: B.S. degrees in physics-engineering and mechanical engineering; M.S. in aeronautics and astronautics.
Mission Specialist Bonnie Dunbar, DOB: 3/3/49, Background: Mission specialist on 61-A and STS-50. Education: M.S. in ceramic engineering; Ph.D. in biomedical engineering. !
9 January 1990 7:35 a.m. EST
Launch was originally scheduled for 18 December 1989, but was postponed in order to complete and verify modifications. The 8 January launch attempt was scrubbed due to weather.!
20 January 1990 1:35 a.m. PST
at Edwards AFB, CA
Mission Duration 10 days, 21 hours. Longest Space Shuttle flight to date.!
