The countdown for the launch of Mission 51L picked up at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday and since that time, the KSC uh Shuttle launch team has been activating vehicle systems and preparing ground launch facilities for this 25th launch in the Shuttle program. This will be the 10th flight of the Orbiter Challenger.
The count entered an extended hold at the T-minus 11 hour mark at 6:00 p.m. on Friday and remained in a hold due to unacceptable weather conditions in the area at the originally planned launch time of 9:36 a.m. Saturday.
In a final weather review attended by program manager Saturday night at 10:00 p.m., the management decided to postpone the launch attempt for 24 hours. The rotating service structure was put back into place around the vehicle to provide weather protection during the inclement weather. The count resumed at 8:17 p.m. Sunday and the rotating service structure was moved away from the vehicle at about that time.
This will be the first launch from Launchpad B since it was last used during the Apollo program.

Coming up in just a few minutes, the crew scheduled departure from their quarters in the O&C building. The flight crew will leave their dressing quarters and come down a hallway to an elevator which will take them from the third floor down to the ground floor where the astronaut van is waiting. There they will be met by a cadre of media representatives. Several hundred media representatives have turned out for this particular mission. And here we are, Commander Dick Scobee followed by Mission Specialist Judy Resnik, Ron McNair, payload specialist Greg Jarvis, Mission Specialist Ellison Onizuka, and Christa McAuliffe, giving a big wave to all the numbers of media.

She's followed by.
You can hear the press calling out to them. As they step onto the astronaut van, it will take them out to the launch pad. The weather here at the Kennedy Space Center is chilly for a January morning. Temperature is about 40 degrees, with a brisk wind, which uh makes the air seem a whole lot chillier than it actually is.
This is Shuttle Launch Control at T-minus 2 hours 11 minutes 25 seconds and counting. The flight crew reaching the white room area where they'll prepare for uh entering the Orbiter uh and getting ready for their flight. They one of the members of the support crew up there with a uh a mortarboard and uh tassel, uh welcoming the uh uh the crew on board and in recognition of the fact that this is the first uh flight for a private citizen in space, the school teacher.
Although the uh the primary mission of 51L may be the uh the tracking and data relay satellite deployment, many people around the country are going to think of it as the first flight of a private citizen. President Reagan determined that that private citizen should be a school teacher because of the great influence teachers have on preparing our citizens and determining the moral and intellectual future of our country. More than 11,000 teachers around the country applied to fly and many of the finalists are in the Kennedy Space Center area to see their representative Christa McAuliffe launch on an adventure in education.
The flight crew appearing to uh be uh sort of crowding into the white room to get out of the cold. Commander Dick Scobee now is getting into the Orbiter, uh followed by pilot Mike Smith. Dick Scobee became a military pilot and later a test pilot the hard way. He enlisted in the Air Force back in 1957 and was trained as a reciprocating engine mechanic. Uh, he was stationed at Kelly Air Force Base in Texas and he attended night classes and earned two years of college credits, which led to his selection for the Airman's Education and Commissioning Program.
He graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in aerospace engineering, received his commission in 1965 and his wings in 1966.
He completed a number of assignments for the Air Force, including a tour of combat duty in Vietnam, before attending the Air Force Aerospace Research Pilot School at Edwards Air Force Base.
Dick Scobee was the pilot of STS-41C, which was the shuttle mission in April 1984, which deployed the large long-duration exposure facility, which is still in orbit, and captured and repaired the Solar Maximum Mission satellite and replaced it in orbit, where it is functioning better than ever now.
Pilot Mike Smith, he's one of the few rookies on board this flight. He's a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis and received his naval aviator wings in 1969.
Uh, he also uh had a two-year tour of duty in Vietnam and is a graduate of the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School and served as an instructor there for 18 months.
He's served as uh commander while he's been with NASA, uh of the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory, which tests all the instrumentation and computers and software for the shuttle. And he was also deputy chief of aircraft operations and technical assistant to the director of flight operations.
Altogether, he's flown uh 28 different types of civilian and military aircraft logging over 4,300 hours.
Uh, Ellison Onizuka has been a familiar face here at the Kennedy Space Center uh for quite some time, uh being a member of the uh the Cape Crusaders, uh which is the astronaut crew which uh uh keeps track of things happening uh in preparations and helps with the uh the team out at the pad.
This is his second space flight, uh for the native of Hawaii. He's a graduate of Konawaena High School and he earned both a Bachelor and Master of Science degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Colorado.
After receiving his commission in the Air Force, he served as a flight test engineer participating in uh flight test programs and safety engineering for the F-84, F-100, F-105, and many other aircraft.
Like other astronauts, uh uh he has been frequently assigned to many technical areas which are essential to successful flights and help carry information they are learning back to the flight crews. His first flight was aboard STS-51C mission, which was a dedicated Department of Defense uh payload.
Mission specialist Judy Resnik also putting on her uh egress harness now. She was a uh mission specialist on the STS-41D mission, which deployed three satellites and uh was responsible for uh operating a remote manipulator arm. Uh, she will be again responsible for the remote manipulator arm and placing the Spartan Halley spacecraft in orbit and later recovering it in flight.
Her undergraduate degree was from Carnegie Mellon University and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland. Prior to joining NASA in 1978 as a mission specialist, she worked as a senior systems engineer in product development for the Xerox Corporation in California.
She's a native of Akron, Ohio, is a classical pianist, and also enjoys flying and bicycling during her free time. Payload specialist Christa McAuliffe, uh is standing ready to uh put on her uh egress harness.
She was selected out of 11,000 teacher applicants as the first private citizen to fly on the space shuttle. She teaches at uh Concord High School in Concord, New Hampshire, where her courses are primarily in the area of economics, law, American history, and a course which she developed called the American Woman.
This is McAuliffe grew up in uh Framingham, Massachusetts, where her parents still reside, and graduated from Framingham State College.
Prior to accepting the position at Concord High School, she taught in Maryland, uh and then at Bundlet Junior High in Concord and Bow Memorial High School as well.
One of the courses which uh Christa McAuliffe developed, which has become a permanent part of the curriculum at Concord High is for students who have become turned off by schools, sometimes because of factors such as low ability or low motivation, called success, it's a team uh teaching approach uh where the teachers work with small groups of students in the area of citizenship, law, careers and consumer skills in a way that connects the school with life and gives students a reason to learn. In addition to the many experiments which uh Christa McAuliffe will be uh conducting, uh she also will be keeping a sort of journal that pioneers crossing the country did in the early days of this country, and many people have done throughout history, which sometimes provides some of the greatest insights into everyday life that they experience and their thoughts.
Her journal began at the point of selection and will cover uh training, flight, and her thoughts and reactions to their return.
Payload specialist Greg Jarvis, uh now in the process of putting on his uh uh vest and uh his launch and entry helmet.
He is a Hughes payload specialist, was born in Detroit, Michigan, and graduated from the State University of New York in Buffalo.
Uh he earned a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering from Northeastern University in in Boston.
He is presently uh completing another degree in management science at the West Coast University in Los Angeles.
He worked at Raytheon in uh Bedford, Massachusetts, uh designing electronic circuits and later was a communications payload engineer in their satellite communications program office.
After joining Hughes, he first worked as a subsystem engineer on the Marisat program. He was test and integration manager for the F1 and F2 Leasat spacecraft which have been successfully deployed from the Shuttle.
Dr. Ron McNair, uh who last flew on the STS-41B mission, which deployed two satellites and was the first flight of the man maneuvering unit, uh also suiting up now for his entry.
McNair earned his Ph.D. in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was involved in the early development of chemical and high-pressure carbon dioxide lasers.
Uh in 1975, he studied laser physics with many authorities in the field at the School of Theoretical Physics in France.
In '76, he became a staff physicist with Hughes Research Laboratories working with lasers, and also conducted research on electro-optical laser modulation for satellite communications.
The ice inspection team which was out on the pad during the T-minus 3 hour hold is just reporting back to the launch director, uh Gene Thomas, uh reporting that they believe that the conditions on the external tank and other parts of the orbiter will be acceptable for launch. Uh there is a bit more ice uh in frost than we normally see. Uh it's about one-third of the allowable uh amount at the present time and uh there's not expected to be significant buildup between now and the time we launch because of the uh the relatively low humidity in the area. Well, all seven members of the 51L flight crew are now in the shuttle and the Orbiter test director, uh uh Roberta Wyrick, has verified uh with the Orbiter systems engineers that they are ready to close the crew hatch for flight. Once the hatch is closed and locked in place, special plugs of insulating material will be screwed in place.
We'll be CCOTC 202.
Go ahead. How we doing on closing the hatch? We're at in work right now. Okay. We're doing a continuity check.
OTC OBC. Go ahead OBC.
Okay, uh on our continuity check we're only getting one uh one uh microswitch. Okay. AFM OTC.
Let's see, AFM, go ahead. You need to copy that on the hatch. We're only getting one microswitch on the continuity check?
Uh, that's firm. Uh could you have them open the hatch, back up and close it again?
OBC OBCC, copy that. The recommendation is to open and close again.
Okay, OCC, OBCC. Go ahead OBCC. Okay, we open that hatch and try it again, we still get one light. One continuity.
Okay.
Mr. Street, this is CFM. I need you to inspect the linkage on the hatch and look for uh the arrow on the linkage that should line up on the error when the linkage is overcenter.
This is Shuttle Launch Control at T-minus 50 minutes and counting. The closeout crew in the white room continuing to work on the hatch to the Challenger. Uh the problem is that only one of the microswitches on the door indicates it's closed once they have it in place.
This is CFM. Go ahead, Adam. Uh we are going to uh recommend that this is not a constraint to launch. We don't have a uh launch commit criteria. We're going to wait for the results of the uh hatch leak check. We do have a VLO that says we have one of the two limit switches and uh as long as everything else checks out, all right, and the linkage has been inspected, and the arrows do align on the latch, then uh this should be a problem or a constraint to launch.
Okay.
OCC, uh? Go ahead CDR. Yeah, there's some of those latches that we can't see, if we have a preference, we'd like to have one of the guys that's uh very familiar with the latches to come inside, close the door, check them, to make sure they're all okay, and then send him back out.

again. Okay. Uh, OBCC, copy that? Okay, uh we're in right now in the process of doing the leak check and they'll standby we'll do that. Okay. OTC CDR. Go ahead, CDR. I mean, let me on that my I tell you what he sees if that's acceptable, then we'll go. Okay. And that's correct, ATC. Uh, you want to report what you saw? I observed uh, maybe 12 or 13 of the of the uh, arrows. I can't see them all. Anyway, they're all consistent. I observe that the arrows are not perfectly aligned with the black marker there. There is some overlap but it's not dead center. Uh, with call center. That's consistent with all of them. Okay. OVCC, did you copy that and AFM? OTC and AFM. That's uh, uh, a usual condition that uh, they won't align up exactly, but they are pretty close and that is uh, a good indication. And uh, being that we see 13 ledges, we know that over half of them are on over standard and that indicates that that we do have a good latch of the the hatch there. So, I would recommend uh, proceed uh, without opening the hatch. Okay, uh OTC Launch Director. Go ahead, Launch Director. Let's go ahead. And if there's someone in the white room close out crew that uh, is familiar with the inside of the hatch, let's put someone in there and make sure. It appears that we're going to have one of the closeout crew go into the orbiter and watch the positioning of the various locks on the uh of the hatch to determine if they are actually going into the proper position. Uh, did did you have somebody in there and close the hatch? That's affirmative, yeah. That's we did. We did it twice. We did not find no anomalies. Okay, the safe setting looks real good in there. Launch Director to Challenger. Launch Director, go ahead. Okay, big, you make sure that uh the the non-passengers leave before we go today. We'll do that. Thanks. OBCC, OTCC. This is uh, OTC. Go ahead, OVCC. Okay, uh, we're doing a see leak check this time. Okay, if we get both micro switches, just one. This is shuttle launch control at T minus 30 minutes and counting. Uh, they've had a technician in the crew compartment about three times now taking a look at the latches on the door. It looks like the uh, uh, the door is sealed at the present time. Uh, the cabin leak check will verify that. T minus 20 minutes and holding. This is a 10 minute build in hold. The cabin pressure check has been completed now. OBCOCC. All right, uh, OVCC. Okay, uh, we got a problem on removing one of the screws on the milk stew. It seems to be uh a bit Okay, uh we have 1 2 3 4 5 test down. you are listening to that right? We are working on it. Okay. John Conway, who is payload director for the Kennedy Space Center has pulled all of the payload elements and the uh tracking and data relay satellite. The uh uh inertial upper stage uh the Spartan Halley and all of the middeck experiment um program managers have announced that they are go for launch. T-T-O-T-C 212. Other experiments which are being flown onboard the uh shuttle, also uh are involved with uh monitoring the common Halley. Uh, CHAMP, which stands for Common Halley Active Monitoring Program, uh, which flew on the last mission and will also fly on the next shuttle mission. The CHAMP payload photographs the comet using international Halley Watch comet filters, which allow comparison with data being obtained with many other nations. In addition, Spectra of the comet will be photographed using a grating and image intensifier. Another experiment is the Phase Partitioning Experiment uh, which looks at uh an ideal way of separating biomedical materials in a selective, gentle and inexpensive technique. And we're at T minus 19 minutes 58 seconds and counting. Adding to the world's knowledge of Halley's Comet in particular and our universe in general will be the Spartan Halley free-flying payload, which is onboard 51L. The Spartan is a relatively low-cost instrument carrier which can be used for many types of missions. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics have recycled several instruments and designs to produce a low-cost, high-yield spacecraft to watch Halley's Comet when it is uh too close to the sun for other observatories to do so. It will record ultraviolet light emitted by the chemical reactions going on in the comet's head and tail when it's close to the sun and therefore more active. Determinations can be made as to how fast water is broken down by sunlight. It will also search for carbon and sulfur atoms and related compounds and lead to understanding of how a comet's tail evolves. OTC-BCC. Go ahead, DCC. Okay, uh, we can't get this one last raster out of the middle stew. It appears it might have to be drilled out. Uh, OBCC, you're saying that you cannot remove it. That is correct. I have been working now for 40 minutes on it. Launch Director, OTCC copy. Launch Director, copy. Okay, do we have the proper tools up there to do that job? OBCC. That's a negative, I do not have the drill. This is shuttle launch control at T minus nine minutes and holding, just about nine minutes away from the uh the nominal liftoff time of 9:37. However, we will be uh delaying here uh for a while uh to complete our uh preparations. The closeout crew had asked for a uh battery powered electric drill and the proper drill bits uh for drilling out the uh bolt on the access handle. This handle is used only uh during the time the orbiter is on the ground uh for moving the door. They also uh have asked for a hacksaw and have been cautioned by the the launch director to be extremely careful uh during this particular operation. Uh it's not known exactly uh how long this is going to take, uh the estimates range from about 25 minutes to an hour. The crew uh picking up the tools now, having uh a drill and a uh the proper size bit to drill out the uh the screw which has uh been holding the uh handle on the outside of the door. This is a uh slow operation which must be done very carefully uh to ensure that uh there is no damage uh to the hatch or to the uh the handle. Weather forecasters taking very close looks uh at the uh the weather as we continue to move into this launch window. One of the concerns is the crosswinds at the shuttle landing strip uh in case of a return to launch site abort. There could be a possible violation of the crosswind constraints uh and they are continuing to look at that. Having a problem with the uh drill. They are in the process of obtaining uh another drill uh or another battery pack for that drill. Uh we have just had a uh indication from the launch director that we go for an inertial measurement unit realignment. Uh this takes approximately an hour and uh uh however, it will allow us to go later in the window without having a danger of having to go back and realign at a later time. The decision to do the uh realignment of the inertial measurement unit is based on the progress which they're making at the pad on the hatch door. Uh the hardness of the uh head of the bolt uh is making it very difficult to drill into and uh they are in the process of using the hacksaw to cut the uh the handle off of the door. Uh we are picking up to recycle to the T- minus 20 minute point, at which time we will do a realignment of the inertial measurement unit. OTC, OBCC. Go ahead, OVCC. Okay, uh we're going to start now with the closeout of the hatch, installing the cover panels, and start to configure the white room for fall back. Copy that. T- minus 20 minutes and holding. All the systems on the orbiter uh still uh holding properly to their configuration. Uh the only uh constraint we have uh is that after a certain length of time, it's necessary to realign the inertial measurement unit, and rather than go to that later, uh and take up additional time, we're going to go back and do it now, and then we'll be shooting towards the uh uh later in the window for a launch. It takes approximately an hour to realign those uh inertial measurement units. We're continuing to watch the weather very carefully and uh do not have uh uh the best wind conditions at the moment. Uh but we'll be watching those as we get closer to the proposed launch time. Launch Director to Challenger. VDC-CDR, go ahead. Yeah, Dick and Mike uh we're looking at some crosswinds at the runway right now that don't look uh favorable at all. Uh we probably going to sit here and wait hoping for a break but uh the best estimate is that the crosswinds are out of spec at the runway and won't improve for the rest of the day. I thought I'd let you know you can be doing some thinking about that. Okay, June. Thanks for that. We appreciate it. Okay. The winds have been increasing uh as uh during the past hour. The weather in the Florida area and the Kennedy Space Center area uh is going to continue to get much colder. Uh there has been uh a period of 8 minutes of snow in the Jacksonville area just a short time ago which uh is an indication of the way in which the temperatures are coming down as the front moves off and the jetstream uh brings the extremely cold polar air to the area. The forecast uh for tomorrow uh is looking at about uh 28 degrees uh Fahrenheit in the launch uh area uh at launch time, which would be uh 9:38 uh a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Countdown clock will proceed 3, 2, 1, Mark. T- minus 20 minutes and counting uh moving towards a uh launch time of 12:06. Challenge to launch structure. Launch structure, go ahead. Okay, we're going to hit the nine minutes thick and hope that the RTLS crosswind conditions improve. We're not going to go past the three and a half wind the we like to take with you guys with the crew. So we hope between now and 1:00 we'll get a good shot at it, but uh it doesn't look promising at this moment. Okay, fine. Take care. Launch Director Jean Dom is talking to the crew and uh laying out for them what the chances are for launch uh which he says are not very good. We're T minus 9 minutes and holding. 9 minutes. The launch team now has been informed uh that this will be an indefinite hold. The primary concern uh and the length of the window is determined uh by the uh a crew fatigue factor and the length of time that the crew should be awake uh prior to their first sleep period. If we should uh scrub the launch for today, the earliest uh we could recycle for would be tomorrow morning. Uh the launch time would be uh 9:38 uh a.m. Eastern Standard Time. Uh however, a decision will not be made uh whether to recycle for tomorrow or to stand down until a management meeting uh has occurred. The uh the launch team or the shuttle management team would uh rendezvous uh following a scrub and uh take a look at all of the aspects of it uh including um uh launch team fatigue, uh crew fatigue, uh the uh availability of propellant, the probability of having good weather for the launch and other factors. Uh we would expect that uh a final decision would not actually be made until time for tanking uh around 10:00 tonight. Uh we have just had a uh announcement from launch director Jean Thomas uh to the crew and to the launch team that we are going to scrub for today and uh that the people will be coming out to the pad to uh uh let the crew out of the orbiter uh shortly as we recycle uh the vehicle back to a safe condition. There will be a management uh meeting at uh which all of the various aspects of a uh recycle uh will be uh uh assessed, will take a look at the weather over the next 24 hours and make a decision as to whether to try again for Tuesday morning or whether to wait till later in the week. Uh so in the uh long run, it was the uh the weather once again, which uh was a problem. Uh the wind conditions uh which had uh too great a crosswind at the shuttle landing facility for a return to launch site abort uh continued to be unsatisfactory. There was a slight improvement in the last half hour, but not enough to give us any hope that we could get off before 1:07, which was the end of our extended window for today. OBCCVCC. Go ahead TCC. Okay, uh we're bringing the crew out now. Okay. Copy that and uh be advised that we will be needing to do water drain. Affirmative on we got the equipment here. And OTC CCR. Our crew is off common and we'll see you later. Copy that. Sorry about that. Go. This is Shuttle launch control at T- minus 2 minutes 28, I mean 2 hours 28 minutes and counting. Here comes the

the sub-commander and our flight crew boarding the elevator uh for the second time in two days, ready to depart the O and C building for the launch pad. They'll ride down the uh three floors to the main level. where they will uh exit the O and C building, traditionally met by the members of the media who are uh standing by. waiting to uh document And here comes the light crew now. Commander gets saluted by mission specialists, and pilot Mike Smith, followed by Chris the McCall with future and safe. and payload specialist, Greg Jarvis. Big smiles today. confidently getting into the van. This is Shuttle launch control at T minus two hours 18 minutes and counting. The crew is going to find somewhat of a chilly welcome when they arrive in the cabin. The temperature inside the cabin is about 61 degrees. Uh there is no uh uh real heaters in there overnight and the temperature here at the Kennedy Space Center uh dropped down into the 20s. Uh at launch time it's still expected to be about 25 degrees. OTC BR radio check. ADR OTC I clear. How may. That's clear good morning. Good morning, dead left, let's hope we go today.
I would like to LTV CBR radio check. I right. ADR, this is LTV on air to ground one. I read you five by help me. That clear good morning. Good morning, bird. That's good light. OTC PLT radio check. PLT is OTC uh I copy you 5x help me. Good morning, Mike. We're ready today.
the teacher observer uh Chris has been handed an apple by the uh close out crew. has many people as possible uh are crowd crowding into the white room on the 195 foot level of the pad today because of the very cold temperatures out there. The temperature is about uh 24 degrees uh on the pad at that uh particular level. OTC NS1, 10 minutes check. NS1 is the OTC I read you line clear home. it all clear. Good morning. Good morning. OTC FS2 radio check. FS2 this is OTC and clear. How you doing? I read you the same Good morning. Good morning. OTC. This is the TC and I read you clear how me. Got clear. Good morning. I hope we go today. Good morning. Two. OTC VS2 radio check. VS2, this is uh OTC and air ground one. I read you loud and clear, how me. That's good. Good morning, Greg. Hello how you doing today? We're going to go. OTC and this three radio check. This is OTC on I copy you loud and clear. loud and clear. Good morning. Good morning. T minus one hour 29 minutes and counting. The all seven members of the 51 L flight crew are now in the shuttle and the orbiter test conductor is verifying with the orbiter system engineers that they're ready to close the crew hatch. GOCC OTC. Go ahead. Okay, as soon as you're ready you've got to go to close off the crew compartment hatch. Okay, we copy. CDR OTC round one. Go ahead. Okay, apparently decision has been made, we are going to stop the clock at an hour and 10 minutes to hold for a T0 no earlier than 11:08. Okay, I understand T0 no earlier than 1108. Can you tell us why? Okay, it's the ice problem. They're still assessing the uh ice problem that we had on the structure, and as soon as we get that determination we'll know better. Okay, thanks for that. Okay, we will hold in an hour and 10 minutes uh prior to picking up our new operations. Okay, that's fine. OTC VCC. Go to VCC. Okay, uh we got the hatch locked. We just got one continuity light. But uh MS uh has assured us that that uh the marks are lined up. Okay, AFM you copy that? Roger copy that. That's uh covered by Dave and the uh Let me have the four. Yeah. And we're holding at the one hour and 10 minute point. Call just from Long Straight. Go ahead. Welcome to our northern long facility. Thanks a lot. Yeah, that's the northern most pad we've got, and you can probably tell from the icicles out there how far north it is. Yeah, there's lots of ice on it, it would be warmer on. Yeah, and we would have had all that ice out there I'm sure. Yeah, I see. Everybody feeling right this morning? Okay. Thanks. Okay. We're going to give you a rocket, bay. Good deal. At the present time, where our launch is set for no earlier than 11:08 a.m. Eastern time. Uh that could be adjusted based on the length of this hold. OTC OBC. Go ahead. The white room is configured for a swing back. Okay, very good. And OV2 we will need to verify the water valves are closed. The water valves are uh where we left from their pro for yesterday? Okay. CDR OTC one. Go ahead. Just got word from the NTD that they will be extending the hold. Uh approximately another 30 minutes but that is indefinite at this time. The uh assessment of the ice conditions is still in work and we have no uh answer from them yet. Okay, thanks for that. Uh we've been in a hold uh for about a little more than 20 minutes now, uh during which a meeting has been going on to determine what if any action is necessary because of the buildup of icicles on the fixed service structure out at the pad. Uh these icicles are a result of water systems on the pad uh which had to be uh kept running uh during the night in order to prevent freezing and allow the uh safety systems on the uh structure to be operational. One of the concerns is that uh these icicles, some of which are uh several feet uh long and uh covering some of the structure, could possibly break off during uh lift-off and damage the orbiter and its thermal protection system. Launch directed to the challenger. No, they were fine, I'm sure. I've got some good news for you guys, we're going to come out there and clean a little ice off in selected spots, so we're picking up ion uses now. Fresh and polar, I lost this morning. Sounds great, Jay. Okay. I appreciate your patience so far. All right, just fine. This would give us a uh launch time of 11:38 a.m. this morning. And we have picked up the count, uh we're at 1 hour 9 minutes 55 seconds and counting. We have had a new forecast uh for the new T0 of 11:38, uh which is again satisfactory. Uh there may be uh some scattered clouds at the 25,000 uh foot level. The winds uh have shifted around a little bit towards the west. They're north northwest at about 8 knots. Uh expect to have uh clear skies and visibility of 10 miles or more. The uh temperature is now 30 degrees on the pad. OTC MTM 200. Go ahead. Okay, The countdown has been going very smoothly since we picked it up at the T minus 1 hour and 10 minute point. An uh eight-person uh ice team has gone into the pad now and are working on the mobile launch platform in cleaning up some ice debris in that area, uh and then they will be coming out during the T minus 20 minute hold. Now all persons, now would be reminded that we are coming into the final 20 minutes, we want you to perform your normal monitoring, look for any anomalies. And if they occur prior to nine minutes, you will notify us through your normal reporting channels. And anything that could extend the hold at T minus nine minutes must be immediately reported to allow notification at the start of that nine minutes. Light crew you can request a hold on Channel 212 air to ground one at any time. At T minus nine minutes, when a go is given, this will indicate that all elements are free of problems and should expect a successful launch. At this time, firing three is closed off. And there will be no ingress or egress until our power is clear. mark T minus 20 minutes and counting. The primary uh ascent uh software is in Ops 101, and Commander Dick Soby will now take the backup flight system and put it in the same Ops 101 terminal countdown configuration. CDR OTC take BFS ops 1 prayer checklist. We are in work. Pilot Mike Smith has configured the cockpit instrument panel displays for launch and the solid rocket motor chamber pressure readings have been registered by the orbiter's computers. And OTC, CDR and BFS ops 1's complete. Copy that. T minus 18 minutes and counting. Let me go for empty telecommunications. Uh orbiter tester uh conductor Roberta Wireick telling pilot Mike Smith uh that he can perform the main propulsion system helium reconfiguration. Uh this will open the helium isolation valves which will permit inflight purges of the engines and provide an emergency sort of pressure for pneumatic shutdown of the engine. Can you hear your pulse feed from flight, please? In work. T minus 16 minutes and counting. All cross feed valves are configured. Copy that. The booster tester conductor has been asked to start the gaseous nitrogen purge of the aft skirts. We've just passed the 13 minute point in the countdown. the fuel cell are loaded. Contingency support operations have been verified to be ready for launch. The status of the vehicle is go at this time. On board computer programs have been examined and verified to be the proper ones. All arrow surfaces and actuators that will steer the vehicle through powered flight are in the proper configuration for applying hydraulic pressure and the flight crew has completed all of their cabin leak checks and communications checks with the launch team and flight controllers at mission control. And we're at T minus nine minutes and holding. The prime objective of the 51 L mission is the launch of the second tracking and data relay satellite. This tracking station in the sky will be boosted from the low earth orbit of the shuttle uh to geosynchronous orbit 22,300 miles above the Earth. Boosting it from the lower earth orbit uh will be the inertial upper stage developed under contract to the Air Force by Boeing Aerospace Company, using solid rocket motors manufactured by Chemical Systems Division of United Technologies. In orbit, the two Tdrs satellites will be able to provide direct contact with the space shuttle about 85% of the time, compared with just 15 to 20% of the time for earth ground stations. Although the 51 L's primary mission is orbiting the tracking and data relay satellite and flying the Spartan Halle spacecraft, many people around the country will think of it as the first flight of a private citizen. President Reagan determined that the private citizen should be a school teacher, because of the great influence teachers have on preparing our citizens and determining the moral and intellectual future of our country. More than 11,000 teachers across the country applied to fly and many of the finalists are at KSC to see their representative, Christa McAuliffe, launch on an adventure in education. While in orbit, 15 two 15 minute lessons will be broadcast on day four of the mission and carried live by PBS stations all over the country. This will enable schools which do not have their own satellite antennas to pick up the programs from the NASA satellites to have access to these broadcasts. In addition uh to the broadcasts uh Mrs. McAuliffe will carry out six types of experiments on board which will be filmed and videotaped for use in classrooms in the future. These activities include hydroponics, magnetism, Newton's laws, effervescence, chromatography, and the operation of simple machines. All of these experiments have been designed so that classroom teachers have easy and low cost access to the materials used and can be easily duplicated here on Earth. The countdown clock at T minus nine minutes and holding uh we should have a release of that hold at 11:29. Test director Ken Jenick has completed a poll of the various uh test conductors, including those responsible for the vehicle, the spacecraft, the range, mila tracking station, mission control, and has verified will be ready to come out of the hold at T minus nine minutes. The final go given by uh NASA launch director Gene Thomas. As we come out of the hold, the entire countdown will be performed by the ground launch sequencer program running in the integration Council. The computer will control all the remaining countdown events, as well as monitor the response and status of all the space shuttle system. At T minus 31 seconds, the ground launch sequencer will issue a go to Challenger's onboard computers to start their own automatic sequence. The final command from the ground computers will come at T minus 10 seconds, which will be a go for main engine start. The countdown for a launch like the 51 L mission is four volumes and more than 2,000 pages and we're at T minus nine minutes and counting. Request it's been initiated. The ground launch sequencer program has been initiated. I copy your AT voice recorder. Care EPS will do. And OPS, let's follow standard procedures, 100 pilots are online. Okay, I'm just copying. And I'll sell on the user verification when you get motion on the off quarter. All right, so copies. T minus 8 minutes 30 seconds and counting. Uh the flight instrument recorders are turned on, and Mission control has turned on the auxiliary data system. Uh this package uh collects data from uh the aerodynamic uh information coming

back as the orbiter flies through the atmosphere.
Coming up on the 8-minute point.
Roger, we'll call.
T-minus 8 minutes and counting.
Copy that.
Orbiter test conductor, Roberto Wire has requested that Houston send the stored program command, which is the final update on antenna management based on the liftoff time and sets the system which makes the orbiter compatible with downrange tracking stations.
Copy that.
Monitor play.
Okay, that's complete.
T-minus 7 minutes, 30 seconds and the ground launch sequencer has started retracting the orbiter crew access arm.
This is the walkway used by the astronauts to climb in the vehicle and that arm can be put back in place within about 15 to 20 seconds if an emergency should arise.
Copy that.
Start hydraulic pressure.
Copy.
Roger.
Will come.
CLP OTC perform APU prestart.
OTC CLP is in work.
T-minus 6 minutes and orbiter test conductor has given pilot Mike Smith a go to perform the auxiliary power unit prestart.
He will configure switches in the cockpit to put the auxiliary power units in the ready to start configuration.
Start is complete with three grade talkbacks.
Copy that.
Thank you.
T-minus 5 minutes, 30 seconds and counting and mission control has transmitted the signal to start the onboard flight recorders.
The two recorders will collect measurements of shuttle system performance during flight to be played back after the mission.
Coming up on the 5-minute point.
This is a major milestone where we go for auxiliary power unit start.
T-minus 5 minutes.
We are go for Orbiter APU start.
CLP OTC perform APU start.
And we've had the pilot ordered to perform the APU restart.
Locks replenish has been terminated and liquid oxygen drain back has been initiated.
T-minus 4 minutes, 30 seconds and counting.
The solid rocket booster and external safe and arm devices have been armed.
We've had a report back from Mike Smith that we have three good auxiliary power units.
Main fuel valve heaters on the three shuttle main engines have been turned on in preparation for engine start.
T-minus 4 minutes, the flight crew has been reminded to close their airtight visors on their launch and entry helmets and a final purge sequence of the main engines is underway.
T-minus 3 minutes, 45 seconds and counting.
The Orbiter Aerosurface test is started.
The Orbiter flight control surfaces are now being moved through a preprogrammed pattern to verify that they are ready for launch.
T-minus 3 minutes, 30 seconds and counting.
Orbiter ground support equipment power bus has been turned off and the vehicle is now on internal power.
T-minus 3 minutes, 15 seconds.
Aerosurface checks are complete and aerosurfaces in launch configuration.
Gimbal checks of the Orbiter's main engines now underway.
T-minus 3 minutes and counting.
Gimbal checks now complete.
We let's go for EPT L2 pressurization.
External tank liquid oxygen pressurization is started and purging of the shuttle main engines is terminated.
T-minus 2 minutes, 44 seconds and counting.
Retraction is started of the gaseous oxygen vent hood and the ground launch sequencer will make a final check to make sure the vent arm is fully retracted at T-minus 37 seconds.
OTCPT caution warning memory is cleared, no unexpected errors.
Copy.
T-minus 2 minutes, 20 seconds and we've had the pilot Mike Smith has cleared the caution and memory system.
No unexpected errors reported.
Liquid oxygen ula pressure checks are underway and the liquid oxygen tank approaching flight pressure.
T-minus 2 minutes and counting.
The liquid hydrogen replenish has been terminated and liquid hydrogen pressurization to flight level is underway.
The vehicle is now isolated from all ground propellant and fluid loading equipment.
90 seconds and counting.
The 51L mission ready to go.
The liquid hydrogen tank now at flight pressure and all three engines ready to go.
Let's see by that's 1 minute.
Sound suppression water system now armed.
The hydrogen burn igniters have been armed.
These igniters will be fired at T-minus 10 seconds to burn off any residual hydrogen gas.
T-minus 45 seconds and counting.
The solid rocket booster flight instrumentation recorders have gone into the record mode.
Coming up on the 30-second point in our countdown.
We go for auto sequence start.
And we've had a go for auto sequence start.
The SRB hydraulic power units have started.
T-minus 21 seconds and the solid rocket booster engine gimbal now underway.
T-minus 15 seconds.
T-minus 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, we have main engine start.
4, 3, 2, 1, and lift off.
Lift off of the 25th space shuttle mission, and it has cleared the tower.
Good roll Challenger.
Roger roll Challenger.
Good roll program confirmed.
Challenger now heading down range.
Engine's beginning throttling down now, at 94%.
Normal throttle, for most of the flight, 104%.
A little throttle down, to 65% shortly.
Engine's at 65%, three engines running normally, three good fuel cells, three good APUs.
Velocity, 2,257 ft per second, altitude, 4.3 nautical miles, downrange distance, 3 nautical miles.
Engine's throttling up.
Three engines now at 104%.
Challenger, go at throttle up.
1 minute 15 seconds, velocity 2900 ft per second, altitude 9 nautical miles, downrange distance 7 nautical miles.
Flight controller's here looking very carefully at the situation.
Obviously a major malfunction.
We have no down link.
We have a report from the flight dynamics officer that the vehicle has exploded.
Flight director confirms that we are looking at checking with the recovery forces to see what can be done at this point.
Contingency procedures are in effect.
Again, to repeat, we have a report relayed through the flight dynamics officer that the vehicle has exploded.
We are now looking at all the contingency operations and awaiting word from any recovery forces in the downrange field.
Reports from the flight dynamics officer indicate that the vehicle apparently exploded, and that the impact in the water at a point approximately 28.64 degrees North, 80.28 degrees West.
We are coordinating with recovery forces in the field.
Recovery vehicles intended for the recovery of the SRB in the general area.
This is Mission Control, Houston.
Repeating our earlier information, for those who had not heard it previously.
We did have this morning at launch time, launch time was approximately 10:38 central time.
On launch, approximately a minute or so after tower clear, there was an apparent explosion of the orbiter.
At the time, data was lost approximately a minute into the flight, and it was shortly after throttle up 204% of the three main engines.
The flight director polled positions, flight controller positions in the room later on this morning, and was informed that there were no anomalous indications at the time.
Tracking reported impact of the vehicle with the water.
According to data, that was approximately 18 miles downrange at the time data stopped.
Recovery forces being deployed to the field.
They're unable, we're unable, shortly to enter the specific area because of a continuing falling debris and at about this time were being admitted to the impact area.
Contingency procedures are in effect, and following those procedures, all of the data available in Mission Control from the flight at the point or up to the point of the incident, data is being secured and will be carefully evaluated.
This is Mission Control Houston at 11:48 a.m. central standard time.
Recovery teams are searching the impact area off the coast of launch pad, launch pad 39B where earlier this morning on ascent, we had an incident approximately one minute after ascent, an apparent explosion.
Rescue teams, the search and rescue teams delayed in getting into the area because of debris continuing to fall from very high altitudes for as long almost as an hour, after after ascent.
Those teams are in place now in the search area.
We will provide additional information as it becomes available to us.
This is Mission Control Houston.
Today is a day for mourning and remembering.
Nancy and I are pained to the core by the tragedy of the shuttle Challenger.
We know we share this pain with all the people of our country.
This is truly a national loss.
19 years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts in a terrible accident on the ground.
But we've never lost an astronaut in flight.
We've never had a tragedy like this.
And perhaps we forgotten the courage it took for the crew of the shuttle.
But they, the Challenger seven, were aware of the dangers, but overcame them and did their jobs brilliantly.
We mourn seven heroes: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe.
We mourn their loss as a nation together.
To the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the full impact of this tragedy.
But we feel the loss, and we're thinking about you so very much.
Your loved ones were daring and brave, and they had that special grace, that special spirit that says, "Give me a challenge, and I'll meet it with joy."
They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths.
They wished to serve, and they did.
They served all of us.
We've grown used to wonders in this century.
It's hard to dazzle us.
But for 25 years, the United States space program has been doing just that.
We've grown used to the idea of space, and perhaps we forget that we've only just begun.
We're still pioneers.
They, the members of the Challenger crew, were pioneers.
And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America who were watching the live coverage of the shuttle's takeoff.
I know it's hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen.
It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery.
It's all part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons.
The future doesn't belong to the faint-hearted.
It belongs to the brave.
The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we'll continue to follow them.
I've always had great faith in and respect for our space program.
And what happened today does nothing to diminish it.
We don't hide our space program, we don't keep secrets and cover things up.
We do it all up front and in public.
That's the way freedom is and we wouldn't change it for a minute.
We'll continue our quest in space.
There will be more shuttle flights and more shuttle crews, and yes, more volunteers, more civilians, more teachers in space.
Nothing ends here.
Our hopes and our journeys continue.
I want to add that I wish I could talk to every man and woman who works for NASA or who worked on this mission, and tell them, your dedication and professionalism have moved and impressed us for decades, and we know of your anguish.
We share it.
Here's a coincidence: today, on this day 390 years ago, the great explorer, Sir Francis Drake, died aboard ship off the coast of Panama.
In his lifetime, the great frontiers were the oceans, and the historian later said, he lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in it.
Well, today we can say of the Challenger crew, their dedication was like Drake's, complete.
The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives.
We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God.
Thank you.

I like the idea.