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== Mission summary == [[File:President Reagan at Mission Control, Houston - GPN-2000-001655.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|right|President Reagan talks to the crew of STS-2, in November 1981.]] [[File:Aerial View of Columbia Launch - GPN-2000-001358.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|right|Aerial view of ''Columbia''{{'}}s launch from Pad 39A at the [[Kennedy Space Center]] in [[Florida]].]] [[File:Columbia On Final Approach - GPN-2000-001346.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|right|STS-2 on final approach, coming in for its landing after re-entry, on November 14, 1981.]] The second Space Shuttle mission launched from [[Kennedy Space Center]] on November 12, 1981, with liftoff occurring at 15:10:00 [[Coordinated Universal Time|UTC]], 7 months after [[STS-1]]. The planned launch time of 12:30{{nbsp}}UTC was delayed while a faulty data transmitting unit on ''Columbia'' was replaced with one from new {{OV|99}}, which had been shipped overnight from the [[Palmdale, California]] factory where ''Challenger'' was still being manufactured. Richard Truly became the first astronaut to fly into space on his birthday.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-12 |title=40 Years Ago: Columbia Returns to Space on the STS-2 Mission |url=https://www.nasa.gov/history/40-years-ago-columbia-returns-to-space-on-the-sts-2-mission/ |access-date=2024-01-24 |publisher=NASA |language=en-US}}</ref> Originally, the launch had been set for October 9, 1981, but it was delayed by a [[Dinitrogen tetroxide|nitrogen tetroxide]] spill during the loading of the forward [[Reaction control system|Reaction Control System]] (RCS) tanks. The spill necessitated the removal, decontamination and reapplication of over 300 thermal tiles. The tiles could be reached from platforms at [[Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A|Launch Complex 39A]], allowing the work to take place without destacking ''Columbia'' and returning it to the [[Orbiter Processing Facility]] (OPF). It was next scheduled for November 4, 1981, but was again scrubbed when high oil pressures were discovered in two of the three [[Auxiliary power unit|Auxiliary Power Units]] (APUs) that controlled the orbiter's [[Hydraulics|hydraulic]] system. That issue was attributed to [[hydrazine]] seepage contaminating the lubrication system in the APUs. {{LaunchAttempt | date1 = November 4, 1981, 07:30:00 EST | result1 = Scrubbed | reason1 = Technical | decision_date1 = | decision_clock1 = β00:00:31 | notes1 = APU's 1 and 3 lube oil outlet pressure high at 100 to 112 PSIA. Flushed APU's 1 and 3 gear boxes and changed clogged filters.<ref name="missionsummary">{{cite web|title=Space Shuttle Mission Summary|date=February 11, 2015 |url=https://sma.nasa.gov/SignificantIncidents/assets/space-shuttle-missions-summary.pdf|publisher=NASA Johnson Space Center}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> | date2 = November 12, 1981, 10:10:00 | result2 = Success | reason2 = | decision_date2 = | decision_clock2 = | notes2 = Multiplexer/Demultiplexer (MDM) of 3 failed delaying launch by 2 hours 40 minutes while a replacement from the ''Challenger'' orbiter was flown in. An additional 10-minute delay was introduced for a confidence review of systems status. }} The flight marked the first time an orbital crewed space vehicle had been re-flown with a second crew.<!-- Note that the X-15 was a reusable spacecraft, albeit only capable of suborbital flight --> Prior to launch, ''Columbia'' spent 103{{nbsp}}days in the Orbiter Processing Facility. It again carried the DFI package, as well as the OSTA-l payload (named for the NASA Office of Space and Terrestrial Applications), which consisted of a number of remote-sensing instruments mounted on a [[Spacelab]] pallet in the payload bay. These instruments, including the Shuttle Imaging Radar-A (SIR-A), successfully carried out [[remote sensing]] of Earth's resources, environmental quality, and ocean and weather conditions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://southport.jpl.nasa.gov/scienceapps/sira.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19970208115640/http://southport.jpl.nasa.gov/scienceapps/sira.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=February 8, 1997|title=SIR-A: 1982|publisher=NASA|access-date= June 22, 2013}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> In addition, the [[Canada|Canadian]]-built [[Canadarm|"Canadarm" Remote Manipulator System]] (RMS) was successfully operated in all its various operating modes for the first time. During the mission, the Mission Control Center was visited by [[President of the United States|President]] [[Ronald Reagan]]. He was supposed to visit during [[STS-1]], but was forced to cancel due to an [[Attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan|assassination attempt]] on March 30, 1981. Although the STS-2 mission had been planned for a duration of five days, with a few hours a day spent testing the Canadarm, the flight was cut short when one of the three [[fuel cell]]s that produced electricity and drinking water failed. The mission was shortened to two days, and the Canadarm tests were canceled. The crew stayed awake during a scheduled sleep period and tested the arm anyway, working during the loss of signal (LOS) periods when they were not in contact with Mission Control.<ref name="engleoh"/> The deorbit and reentry phase of this mission differed from [[STS-1]], in that while the first shuttle entry was flown as a "middle of the road" test of the automatic guidance, the success of that mission allowed for the STS-2 crew to explore the stability margins of the vehicle's performance. Twenty-nine planned Programmed Test Inputs (PTIs) were manually flown in the Control Stick Steering (CSS) mode, with Engle making use of his past experience in the X-15. These PTIs provided useful data for subsequent engineering modifications.<ref name="engleoh">{{Cite interview |last=Engle |first=Joe |interviewer=Rebecca Wright |title=Joe H. Engle Oral History |url=https://historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov/JSCHistoryPortal/history/oral_histories/EngleJH/EngleJH_6-3-04.htm |access-date=July 17, 2013 |work=NASA Johnson Space Center Oral History Project |date=June 3, 2004}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> Contrary to the interviewer's assertion in a JSC Oral history conversation with Engle, he hand flew maneuvers throughout the entire entry speed range, but not for the entire duration.<ref>{{cite book |author=Jenkins |first=Dennis R. |title=Space Shuttle: Developing an Icon 1972-2013 |date=2017 |publisher=Speciality Press |isbn=9781580072496}}</ref> As a consequence of STS-1 entry anomalies, the first roll maneuver was flown manually and the elevon scheduling was adjusted to offload the body flap. Chase 1 crewed by astronauts [[Robert L. Gibson|"Hoot" Gibson]] and [[Kathryn D. Sullivan|Kathy Sullivan]] escorted ''Columbia'' on final approach. Landing took place on Runway{{nbsp}}23 at [[Edwards Air Force Base]] at 21:23{{nbsp}}UTC, on November 14, 1981, after a 37-orbit flight which covered a total of {{cvt|1730000|km}} over the course of 2{{nbsp}}days, 6{{nbsp}}hours, 13{{nbsp}}minutes and 12{{nbsp}}seconds.<ref name="NASA - STS-2"/> Despite the truncated flight, more than 90% of the mission's objectives were achieved.<ref name="engleoh"/> Moreover, modifications of the water sound suppression system at the pad, to absorb the [[solid rocket booster]] overpressure wave during launch, were effective; no tiles were lost and only 12 were damaged. ''Columbia'' was flown back to the Kennedy Space Center on November 25, 1981. STS-2 was the first Space Shuttle flight where O-ring blow-by was observed. After the damage was discovered, another O-ring was intentionally damaged to a further degree. It was then put through a flight simulation at three times the flight pressure. It survived the test, and was endorsed as flightworthy. This same problem would occur on fourteen more Shuttle flights, before contributing to the [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|loss of orbiter ''Challenger'']] in 1986. STS-2 was the last shuttle flight to have its [[Space Shuttle external tank|external fuel tank]] (ET) painted white. In an effort to reduce the Shuttle's overall weight, [[STS-3]] and all subsequent missions used an unpainted tank, saving approximately {{cvt|272|kg}} of launch weight.<ref name="et_paint">{{Cite press release |title=NASA Takes Delivery of 100th Space Shuttle External Tank |date=August 16, 1999 |publisher=NASA |url=http://www.msfc.nasa.gov/news/news/releases/1999/99-193.html |access-date=July 17, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311004932/http://www.msfc.nasa.gov/news/news/releases/1999/99-193.html |archive-date=March 11, 2007 |url-status=dead}} pp. 99β193 {{PD-notice}}</ref> This lack of paint gave the ET a distinctive orange-brown color, which eventually became emblematic of the Space Shuttle. Decades later, in 2006, some in the spaceflight community questioned whether the white paint would have prevented the ice-soaked foam shedding issue that led to the [[Space Shuttle Columbia disaster|loss of ''Columbia'']]. NASA consensus was that it would not.<ref name="space.com">{{Cite web |last=Malik |first=Tariq |date=April 12, 2006 |title=Columbia's White External Fuel Tanks |url=https://www.space.com/2282-columbias-white-external-fuel-tanks.html |access-date=December 30, 2017 |website=Space.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Space Shuttle Mission Summary|date=February 11, 2015 |url=https://www.jsc.nasa.gov/history/reference/TM-2011-216142.pdf|publisher=NASA Johnson Space Center}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
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