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Forum:	Patches & Pins
Topic:	Mission decals on Armstrong O&C crew exit

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Your Reply: HTML is ON UBB Code is ON Smilies Legend	[QUOTE]Originally posted by Jacques van Oene: [B]The Thunderbirds patch is also gone. To add, in this photo the Starliner crew patch and Thunderbirds patch are there, so not sure what is going on. <center><a href="https://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/AFRC2025-0189-14-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="https://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/AFRC2025-0189-14.jpg" width="400" height="225" border="0"></a></center>[/B][/QUOTE]
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<table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width="600"><TR><td bgcolor="#000000"><TABLE BORDER=0 cellpadding=4 border=0 cellspacing=1 WIDTH="100%"><TR bgcolor="#660000"><TD COLSPAN=2><CENTER>T O P I C     R E V I E W</CENTER></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Robert Pearlman</TD><TD>It has been a tradition for NASA crews exiting their quarters to depart for the launch pad to affix their mission patch in decal form to the door frame of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations & Checkout Building at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Kirby Kahler wrote about the custom and its history for The Space Review ("<A HREF="https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4018/1" TARGET=_blank>Walking through the doors of history: unlocking a space tradition</A>") in 2020. <BLOCKQUOTE> The posting of the first mission sticker at the O&C began with STS-87 on November 19, 1997. The decal first appeared directly in the middle of the doorway "head" prior to the mission. It is not immediately identifiable as it does not match in any of the sticker databases. This became Mystery Sticker 1, and needed further investigation.Questions also arose considering this tradition and why it started with STS-87, as there were many prior shuttle missions. It was also discovered that there were two NASA signs with stickers, but NASA Sign 1 disappeared after STS-114.</BLOCKQUOTE> <center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/nasa_sts_87_walkout01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/nasa_sts_87_walkout01.jpg" width="400" height="225" border="0"></a></center>It is not known whose idea it was or why the tradition began with STS-87 in 1997 (as pictured above). The decal that was added was not their mission patch but the insignia for one of their payloads, Spartan 201. Kirby's article has a list of the missions represented from STS-87 through SpaceX Demo-2. There are also decals for Expedition 4, Expedition 5, JAXA's Kibo pressurized lab (launched on STS-124), Naoko Yamazaki's personal patch for STS-131 and the shuttle crew escape team. For reasons unknown, there are no decals for STS-88, STS-95, STS-102, STS-113, and STS-117.<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/spacex_crew_10_walkout01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/spacex_crew_10_walkout01.jpg" width="400" height="225" border="0"></a></center>Since Kirby's article was published, additional decals have been added (through SpaceX Crew-10, as pictured above): <UL TYPE=SQUARE>Left Jam (top to bottom, starting below STS-128):<LI>SpaceX Crew-9 <LI>STS-51A <LI>SpaceX Crew-10Right jam (top to bottom, starting below STS-117):<LI>STS-109 (previously on sign 1) <LI>SpaceX Crew-3 <LI>SpaceX Crew-4 <LI>SpaceX Crew-5 <LI>SpaceX Crew-6 <LI>SpaceX Crew-7 <LI>SpaceX Crew-8NASA "meatball" sign 2 (in order of placement, after Yamazaki's patch):<LI>U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds <LI>SpaceX Crew-1 <LI>SpaceX Crew-2 (covering Yamazaki's patch) <LI>Starliner Crew Flight Test</UL> </TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Jacques van Oene</TD><TD>If you are wondering about the STS-51A decal, Anna Fisher added it last January:<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/nasa_sts_51a_armstrong_oc_decal01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/nasa_sts_51a_armstrong_oc_decal01.jpg" width="400" height="225" border="0"></a><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/nasa_sts_51a_armstrong_oc_decal02-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/nasa_sts_51a_armstrong_oc_decal02.jpg" width="400" height="225" border="0"></a><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/nasa_sts_51a_armstrong_oc_decal03-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/nasa_sts_51a_armstrong_oc_decal03.jpg" width="400" height="533" border="0"></a></center></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Peter G Duncan</TD><TD>I started researching the mission patch decals in 2012, and welcomed Kirby Kahler's 2020 article to try and solve the identity of three 'mystery' patches I'd observed.The first 'mystery' patch appeared (as Kirby pointed out) at the walkout of STS-87. It remained in place through STS-89 and STS-90, and was replaced/covered by the STS-91 patch in time for the walkout of that crew.Using the highest resolution photos available at the time, the first 'mystery' patch looked like this:<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals01.jpg" width="400" height="344" border="0"></a></center>I don't believe it's the 'Spartan 201' patch.The second 'mystery' patch (not mentioned by Kirby) appeared on the 'left head' of the doorway during the STS-99 walkout, to the left of the STS-108 patch.By the next flight (STS-101) it had been removed.<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals02-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals02.jpg" width="400" height="269" border="0"></a></center>The third 'mystery' patch appeared at about 7 o'clock on the original NASA Meatball sign for the walkout of STS-113, and remained for the next flight: STS-107. <center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals04-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals04.jpg" width="400" height="325" border="0"></a></center>It vanished along with the NASA sign when it was replaced prior to the walkout of the STS-114 return-to-flight mission.I agree with Kirby's identification.<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals03-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals03.jpg" width="400" height="298" border="0"></a></center>The way the first two patches were treated suggests they were considered 'inappropriate', such that they weren't directly related to the Shuttle program.Perhaps they were applied by representatives of KSC contractors.I've scanned as many mission-connected patches (payload, DoD, personal crew-member etc.) as I could find, without success.It'd be helpful if anyone could provide some further clues to help identify the first two 'mystery' patches, or point me to higher-resolution images (wherever NASA has hidden them).As a follow-on from Kirby's article, a few points: <UL><LI>The patch for STS-93 was also never added<LI>During Kirby's visit to KSC in July 2019, he noted that the patch for STS-117 had peeled away. It had originally been applied to the top of the right jam some time after STS-124 and before STS-130 (many walkout photos don't have a clear view of the right jam). What's clear is that a fresh replacement was applied prior to the walkout of the SpX-DM2 crew in May 2020.<LI>Likewise, the 'severely faded' STS-111 patch Kirby witnessed had also been replaced with a fresh copy.<LI>The STS-105 patch was first applied to the bottom left corner of the original NASA sign. A replacement was applied below the STS-117 patch prior to SpX-DM2.<LI>I'm curious as to why the USAF Thunderbirds patch was added to the bottom-right of the replacement NASA sign prior to the walkout of Crew-8.</UL> What has been frustrating is that many of the high-resolution photos of crew walkouts originally posted by NASA have subsequently vanished. Most of the links I recorded along the way are now dead.Here is a table that outlines the comings and goings of patch decals to-date:<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals05-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals05.jpg" width="400" height="585" border="0"></a></center>And the following illustrates what the doorway looks like today (a mash-up of various walk-out photos in recent years):<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals06-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals06.jpg" width="400" height="271" border="0"></a></center>Thanks to Mike Acs (Flickr) for directing me to this discussion.</TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Jim Behling</TD><TD> <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>Originally posted by Peter G Duncan: The first 'mystery' patch appeared (as Kirby pointed out) at the walkout of STS-87.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> That is 51-C.<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jimbehling/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/jimbehling/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals01.jpg" width="400" height="344" border="0"></a></center></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Peter G Duncan</TD><TD>I had considered STS-51C, but the decal has (what appears to be) a fully red border. Also, there's no place for Payton's name, and there's no extension of the eagle's wings.And once in place, why would it have been removed? It seems to have a head-on image of the shuttle. </TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Ben</TD><TD>My first instinct about this, without having noted the timeframe, is that it looks like the STS-91 design but as a circle and not an octogon. And you say it was replaced by 91 as well. Any chance the crew had an earlier circular design which we are not familiar with?Definitely not 51C.And now to add to the mystery:This photo is from the STS-91 TCDT dated May 7, 1998. So, before their launch and after STS-90. There is a single decal and it does not match the other single decal photo above:<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/ben/sts_91_tcdt_walkout01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/ben/sts_91_tcdt_walkout01.jpg" width="400" height="400" border="0"></a></center></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Peter G Duncan</TD><TD>That was a great find Ben. It seems that NASA only has that photo (KSC-98PC-0604_2) on Flickr to show the STS-91 crew exiting (for the TCDT). My original hi-res source (science.ksc.nasa.gov) is no more.Here's the head of the exit during the STS-90 walkout on 17 April 1998:<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals07-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals07.jpg" width="400" height="321" border="0"></a></center>And this is the same spot during the STS-91 walkout on 2 June:<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals08-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals08.jpg" width="400" height="291" border="0"></a></center>As I mentioned in my table, during STS-91, the crew patch has now replaced Mystery #1 (to the right of STS-90), and STS-89 is to the left of STS-90.To me, the STS-91 TCDT image looks like Mystery #1 has been removed, and someone thought it was a good idea to place STS-89 over STS-90. Then (in time for STS-91 launch) they were placed in the correct sequence.</TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Ben</TD><TD>You're right, it looks like 89 on top of 90 now that you said it.The newer NASA images website is not great and it is a shame they deleted all the old sites. But, with enough digging you may find more walkout images in there. Keywording is poor and inconsistent. </TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Jim Behling</TD><TD> <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>Originally posted by Peter G Duncan: Also, there's no place for Payton's name, and there's no extension of the eagle's wings.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Not all patches/decals had Payton's name nor the wing extensions.</TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Robert Pearlman</TD><TD>I had the idea that the Thunderbirds decal may have been left by former team member Scott "Kidd" Poteet. He was at Kennedy Space Center around the same time the decal appeared preparing for the Polaris Dawn launch.Alas, it wasn't him. He suggested it was likely a more current team member who may have been given a VIP tour at some point and to look at the air show calendar to see when the team was performing in the general area.The Thunderbirds did perform a flyover of Kennedy Space Center earlier in 2023 on their way to the Cocoa Beach Air Show, but the decal appears much later, well after that show concluded. </TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Peter G Duncan</TD><TD>During the walkout for the Artemis II CDDT (countdown demonstration test) on 20 December, I couldn't help but notice that, since the departure of Crew-11 in August, the patch for CST-100 (Boe-CFT) has gone missing (replaced with a letter 'M').Couldn't blame NASA for trying to erase that flight from memory.<center><a href="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals09-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="http://www.collectspace.com/review/petergduncan/armstrong_o&c_crew_exit_mission_decals09.jpg" width="400" height="302" border="0"></a></center></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Jacques van Oene</TD><TD>The Thunderbirds patch is also gone.To add, in this photo the Starliner crew patch and Thunderbirds patch are there, so not sure what is going on.<center><a href="https://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/AFRC2025-0189-14-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="https://www.collectspace.com/review/jacquesvanoene/AFRC2025-0189-14.jpg" width="400" height="225" border="0"></a></center></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Robert Pearlman</TD><TD>I found the discrepancy: <UL TYPE=SQUARE><LI>The photo posted by Jacques was taken on Dec. 20, 2025. <LI>The photo posted by Peter was taken on Sept. 20, 2023.</UL> You can tell the difference by the configuration of the OCSS suit. For the 2023 test, the astronauts did not yet have their mission patch. For the 2025 CDDT they wore the mission patch on their shoulders.</TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>Peter G Duncan</TD><TD>I stand corrected (fortunately). Thanks for the pick-up Robert.I was hunting for pics of the doorway for the 20 December walkout without success. I did find one HD video on YouTube, but it was taken from close to the Astrovan.When I did find a decent head-on video from another source, I didn't twig that it was from the 2023 exercise.</TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#494949"><TD valign=top>Jacques van Oene</TD><TD>NASA <A HREF="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nasakennedy/55180078515/" TARGET=_blank>photo release</A> <BLOCKQUOTE>From left, Artemis II Pilot Victor Glover, Mission Specialist Christina Koch, and Commander Reid Wiseman from NASA, along with Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen, from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), place their Artemis II mission insignia on the outside door the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, March 30, 2026. It's a tradition for any crewed mission to place their insignias on the door leaving where they have quarantined and suited up ahead of launch.</BLOCKQUOTE> <center><a href="https://www.collectspace.com/review/artemis_ii_decal_armstrong_o&c_exit01-lg.jpg" target="AirLock"><img src="https://www.collectspace.com/review/artemis_ii_decal_armstrong_o&c_exit01.jpg" width="400" height="267" border="0"></a></center></TD></TR><TR bgcolor="#333333"><TD valign=top>OV-105</TD><TD>Looks like the STS-98 decal is coming off the door frame. </TD></TR></TABLE></td></tr></table>

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