karn (08/01/82)
I am wondering if anybody knows the sequence of events planned for STS-5. This is the first operational mission of the shuttle, and the first to use a solid-fuel upper stage for the payloads (SBS-C and a Telesat satellite). I would expect that the exhaust plumes from the solid upper stages, which use essentially the same fuel as the shuttle boosters, will expand rapidly in vacuum and reflect sunlight. If the upper stages are fired within view of an observer in darkness, they should be very visible for a short time. Phil