STS-35

STS-35 was the 38th NASA Space Shuttle mission and the tenth mission of the Space Shuttle Columbia. Launched on December 2, 1990, and landing on December 11, 1990, the primary purpose of STS-35 was to carry the ASTRO-1 observatory into orbit.

ASTRO-1 consisted of four telescopes: the Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope (HUT), the Astro Broad Band X-Ray Telescope (BBXRT), the Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (UIT), and the Wisconsin Ultraviolet Photo-Polarimeter Experiment (WUPPE). These instruments were designed to study the universe in the ultraviolet and X-ray wavelengths, allowing scientists to observe a wide range of celestial objects such as quasars, active galactic nuclei, and stars.

The mission faced some initial delays due to hydrogen leaks. Once in orbit, the mission was also affected by problems with the pointing system of the Instrument Pointing System (IPS), which required astronauts to manually aim the telescopes for much of the mission. Despite these challenges, STS-35 successfully collected a significant amount of scientific data. The crew included Vance D. Brand (Commander), Guy S. Gardner (Pilot), Jeffrey A. Hoffman (Mission Specialist 1), John M. Lounge (Mission Specialist 2), Robert A. Parker (Mission Specialist 3), Ronald A. Parise (Payload Specialist 1), and Samuel T. Durrance (Payload Specialist 2).