packer@chrpserv.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) (01/08/90)
Here is a question that occurred to me when I read in the paper today that Dr. Bonnie Dunbar will operate the mechanical arm to grab te LDEF satellite during the forthcoming shuttle mission. I vaguely recall that a woman operated the arm the first time it was used. If my recollection is correct, then has the arm been operated by a woman in every mission where it was used?
richard@eel.cs.ucla.edu (Richard A. Balser) (01/08/90)
From what I can remember, the first flight of the Robot Arm was either STS-2 or STS-3. In either case, the operator had to be a man, as the crews of the missions were respectively Joe Engle and Richard Truly, followed by Jack Lousma and Gordon Fullerton. Of course, I have left out the possibility that you meant the first person to ever operate the RMS in the ground-testing phase..... -R.B. "I'm not aware of too many things; I know what I know if you know what I mean"
gabriele@hub.toronto.edu (Mark Gabriele ) (01/09/90)
Astronaut Terry Hart (male) used the arm to grapple the Solar Max satellite, and thus became the first person to catch an orbitting satellite. I do not recall the mission number. =Mark Gabriele
shelley@cbnewsh.ATT.COM (shelley.l.rosenbaum) (01/10/90)
In article <666@dftsrv.gsfc.nasa.gov> packer@chrpserv.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes: >Here is a question that occurred to me when I read in the >paper today that Dr. Bonnie Dunbar will operate the mechanical arm >to grab te LDEF satellite during the forthcoming shuttle mission. > >I vaguely recall that a woman operated the arm the first time it >was used. If my recollection is correct, then has the arm been >operated by a woman in every mission where it was used? Actually, it depends on what you mean by, "operated." The first time the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) was used was in STS-2--Engle and Truly used it to verify that it worked. It was also used in STS-3 by Lousma and Fullerton to move the Plasma Diagnostics Package around outside and inside the payload bay, and restore it to the stored position. Likewise, Mattingly and Hartsfield used it to swing the Induced Environmental Contamination Monitor around the orbiter. The first woman to use the RMS was Ride in STS-7. -- shellEy L. Rosenbaum - AT&T Bell Laboratories, Air Traffic Control Systems {att, arpa, allegra}!erebus!slr or slr@erebus.att.com (201) 949 3615 "Raw. Rah, rah, rah, that's the spirit."
shelley@cbnewsh.ATT.COM (shelley.l.rosenbaum) (01/10/90)
In article <1990Jan8.153924.2583@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> gabriele@hub.toronto.edu (Mark Gabriele ) writes:
#Astronaut Terry Hart (male) used the arm to grapple the Solar Max satellite,
#and thus became the first person to catch an orbitting satellite. I do
#not recall the mission number.
STS-11.
--
shellEy L. Rosenbaum - AT&T Bell Laboratories, Air Traffic Control Systems
{att, arpa, allegra}!erebus!slr or slr@erebus.att.com (201) 949 3615
"Raw. Rah, rah, rah, that's the spirit."thomas@mvac23.UUCP (Thomas Lapp) (01/10/90)
> From what I can remember, the first flight of the Robot Arm was either STS-2 > or STS-3. In either case, the operator had to be a man, as the crews of > the missions were respectively Joe Engle and Richard Truly, followed by > Jack Lousma and Gordon Fullerton. > I'm not sure if it was used when in the bay. It's first operational use in space (as opposed to just testing the thing out) was by Judith Resnick or Sally _________. - tom -- internet : mvac23!thomas@udel.edu or thomas%mvac23@udel.edu uucp : {ucbvax,mcvax,psuvax1,uunet}!udel!mvac23!thomas Europe Bitnet: THOMAS1@GRATHUN1 Location: Newark, DE, USA Quote : Virtual Address eXtension. Is that like a 9-digit zip code? -- The UUCP Mailer
moe@nuchat.UUCP (Norman C. Kluksdahl) (01/10/90)
In article <666@dftsrv.gsfc.nasa.gov> packer@chrpserv.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes: > >I vaguely recall that a woman operated the arm the first time it >was used. If my recollection is correct, then has the arm been >operated by a woman in every mission where it was used? > As others have so generously pointed out, your recollection is wrong. Now, for the 64K question: what difference does it make? all astronauts are quite highly trained. since when did gender make a difference? ===================================================================== Norman Kluksdahl ...!nuchat!moe
richard@eel.cs.ucla.edu (Richard A. Balser) (01/10/90)
>In article <1990Jan8.153924.2583@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> gabriele@hub.toronto.edu (Mark Gabriele ) writes: >#Astronaut Terry Hart (male) used the arm to grapple the Solar Max satellite, >#and thus became the first person to catch an orbitting satellite. I do >#not recall the mission number. > >STS-11. > The mission was actually the thirteenth shuttle flight and called STS- 41C using the flight numbering system which lasted up to Challenger's launch in 1986.... --RB
packer@chrpserv.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) (01/11/90)
Thanks for the response to my question, and thanks for waiting until last to flame me with the inevitable "what difference does it make." Absolutely none, I agree. Just an off-the-wall question. See my concurrent posting "Mate-Demate Facility" for another example of a similar type of question, where I did a little work and got the answer myself.