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Author
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Topic: STS-1: Young's and Crippen's pressure suits
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heng44
Member Posts: 3387
From: Netherlands
Registered: Nov 2001
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posted 12-07-2015 02:50 PM
   
A question I am posting for a good friend:What did happen to the brown pressure suits that were worn during STS-1 till STS-4? For example the suits of John Young and Bob Crippen, where are they now? And the suit Story Musgrave wore on the very first shuttle EVA on STS-6? I was just curious to know if those suits are on display and if there are good photographs of them. |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 12-07-2015 04:18 PM
There were eight "brown" (dark gold PBI) S1030A Ejection Escape Suits worn during the early space shuttle program (there were five additional gold PBI suits used/worn).John Young wore serial no. 002 and Bob Crippen wore serial no. 003 on STS-1. Young's is the only such suit preserved. It is displayed at Space Center Houston. Dennis Jenkins describes the fates of the others in "Dressing for Altitude." Five of the S1030A suits were sent to Beale AFB, where the PSD [Physiological Support Division] recovered the hardware for use on standard S1030 PPAs [Pilots Protective Assembly]. NASA removed the USAF hardware from the remainder of the suits and they were subsequently scrapped... As for the spacesuits Story Musgrave and Don Peterson used on the first shuttle-era spacewalks, there are no complete flown extravehicular mobility units (EMUs) on display. The EMUs were designed to be reused and their parts mixed and matched based on the crew members' needs. The suit components were worn by multiple astronauts in space, and then when no longer flight worthy, put to use for training, familiarization and eventually education and outreach. For example on STS-6, Musgrave wore EMU serial no. 1026, which included PLSS no. 1003 and hard upper torso (HUT) no. 1024. The same PLSS had previously flown on STS-1 (assigned to John Young) and was subsequently used by David Leestma on STS-41G, Bill Fisher on STS-51I, Jim Newman on STS-51, Mark Lee on STS-64, Bernard Harris on STS-63, by Lee again on STS-82 and Takao Doi on STS-87 (among possible others). PLSS 1003 is still in use today. |
Hart Sastrowardoyo
Member Posts: 3445
From: Toms River, NJ
Registered: Aug 2000
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posted 12-07-2015 05:37 PM
So, there were 13 such S1030A suits. But there were 14 astronauts pictured in them (STS-1 to STS-6), although the STS-5 and 6 crews didn't wear them in flight. Were some of the suits reused in photos? |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 07-28-2017 07:54 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Hart Sastrowardoyo:
But there were 14 astronauts pictured in them
I count 16 astronauts pictured wearing the gold suits. Fred Haise had suit no. 007, but I have not seen a portrait of him wearing it. If such a photo exists, the count would be 17. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 07-29-2017 06:59 AM
There is also a group photo of Guion Bluford, Ronald McNair and Frederick Gregory wearing the gold suits.
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David C
Member Posts: 1015
From: Lausanne
Registered: Apr 2012
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posted 07-29-2017 07:17 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Hart Sastrowardoyo:
Were some of the suits reused in photos?
I'm sure they were. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 07-30-2017 01:31 PM
STS-3 training photo S78-34905 shows Jack Lousma sitting in the right seat, so that might be Fred Haise sitting in the left seat. Photo is dated 09/08/78. |
LM-12
Member Posts: 3208
From: Ontario, Canada
Registered: Oct 2010
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posted 08-01-2017 08:50 AM
Richard Truly, Gordon Fullerton, Ken Mattingly, Karol Bobko, Story Musgrave, Donald Peterson and Joe Allen are all wearing the gold shuttle ejection escape suits in their current NASA astronaut biography photos. |
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