View source for STS-81

{{short description|1997 American crewed spaceflight to Mir}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2023}}
{{Infobox spaceflight
| name                  = STS-81
| names_list            = [[Space Transportation System]]-81
| image                 = Mir from STS-81.jpg
| image_caption         = View of ''Mir'' from ''Atlantis'', with the [[Soyuz TM-24|Soyuz-TM ''Fregat'']] and [[Progress M-33|Progress 233]] docked
| insignia              = Sts-81-patch.png

| spacecraft            = {{OV|104}}
| mission_type          = [[Shuttle-Mir program|Shuttle-Mir]]
| operator              = [[NASA]]
| COSPAR_ID             = <!-- Wikidata -->
| SATCAT                = <!-- Wikidata -->
| orbits_completed      = 160
| distance_travelled    = {{convert|6100000|km}}
| mission_duration      = 10{{nbsp}}days, 4{{nbsp}}hours, 56{{nbsp}}minutes, 30{{nbsp}}seconds
| launch_mass           = 
| landing_mass          = 
| payload_mass          = {{convert|2250|kg}}

| launch_site           = [[Kennedy Space Center|Kennedy]], [[Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39B|LC-39B]]
| launch_date           = {{Start date text|January 12, 1997, 09:27:23|timezone=yes}}&nbsp;UTC

| landing_date          = {{End date text|January 22, 1997, 14:23:51|timezone=yes}}&nbsp;UTC
| landing_site          = Kennedy, [[Shuttle Landing Facility|SLF&nbsp;Runway&nbsp;33]]

| crew_size             = 6
| crew_members          = {{Unbulleted list|[[Michael A. Baker]]|[[Brent W. Jett Jr.]]|[[Peter J. K. Wisoff]]|[[John M. Grunsfeld]]|[[Marsha Ivins]]}}
| crew_launching        = {{Unbulleted list|[[Jerry M. Linenger]]}}
| crew_landing          = {{Unbulleted list|[[John E. Blaha]]}}
| crew_photo            = STS-81_crew.jpg
| crew_photo_caption    = Left to right - Front: Jett, Baker; Back: Grunsfeld, Blaha, Wisoff, Linenger, Ivins

| docking               = 
 {{Infobox spaceflight/Dock
   |docking_target      = [[Mir]]
   |docking_type        = dock
   |docking_port        = [[Mir Docking Module|SO]]&nbsp;starboard
   |docking_date        = January 15, 1997, 03:54:49{{nbsp}}UTC
   |undocking_date      = January 20, 1997, 02:15:44{{nbsp}}UTC
   |time_docked         = 4&nbsp;days, 22&nbsp;hours, 20&nbsp;minutes 55&nbsp;seconds
 }}

| apsis                 = gee
| orbit_epoch           = 
| orbit_reference       = [[geocentric orbit|Geocentric]]
| orbit_regime          = [[Low Earth orbit|Low Earth]]
| orbit_periapsis       = {{convert|380|km}}
| orbit_apoapsis        = {{convert|392|km}}
| orbit_period          = 92.2 min
| orbit_inclination     = 51.6 degrees

| programme             = [[Space Shuttle program]]
| previous_mission      = [[STS-80]]
| next_mission          = [[STS-82]]
}}
'''STS-81''' was a January 1997 [[Space Shuttle]] [[Space Shuttle Atlantis|''Atlantis'']] mission to the [[Mir]] space station.

==Crew==
{{Spaceflight crew
|terminology       = Astronaut
|position1         = Commander
|crew1_up          = [[Michael A. Baker]]
|flights1_up       = Fourth and last
|position2         = Pilot
|crew2_up          = [[Brent W. Jett Jr.]]
|flights2_up       = Second
|position3         = Mission Specialist 1
|crew3_up          = [[Peter J. K. Wisoff]]
|flights3_up       = Third
|position4         = Mission Specialist 2<br>Flight Engineer
|crew4_up          = [[John M. Grunsfeld]]
|flights4_up       = Second
|position5         = Mission Specialist 3
|crew5_up          = [[Marsha Ivins]]
|flights5_up       = Fourth
|position6         = Mission Specialist 4
|crew6_up          = [[Jerry M. Linenger]]
|flights6_up       = Second and last
|expedition6_up    = [[Mir EO-22|EO-22]]
|crew6_down        = [[John E. Blaha]]
|flights6_down     = Fifth and last
|expedition6_down  = [[Mir EO-22|EO-22]]
}}

=== Crew seat assignments ===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! Seat<ref name="spacefacts">{{Cite web |title=STS-81 |url=https://spacefacts.de/mission/english/sts-81.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520023309/http://www.spacefacts.de/mission/english/sts-80.htm |archive-date=May 20, 2018 |access-date=January 3, 2018 |publisher=Spacefacts}}</ref>
! Launch
! Landing
|rowspan=8| [[File:Space Shuttle seating plan.svg|150px]]<br />Seats 1–4 are on the flight deck.<br />Seats 5–7 are on the mid-deck.
|-
! 1
|colspan=2| Baker
|-
! 2
|colspan=2| Jett
|-
! 3
| Wisoff
| Ivins
|-
! 4
|colspan=2| Grunsfeld
|-
! 5
| Ivins
| Wisoff
|-
! 6
|Linenger
|Blaha
|-
! 7
|colspan=2 style="background-color:lightgray"| ''Unused''
|}

==Mission highlights==
[[File:STS-81 Launch.jpg|right|thumb|''Atlantis'' launches at the beginning of the STS-81 mission to the Mir Space Station.]]
STS-81 was the fifth of nine planned missions to [[Mir]] and the second one involving an exchange of U.S. astronauts. Astronaut John Blaha, who had been on Mir since September 19, 1996, was replaced by astronaut Jerry Linenger. Linenger spent more than four months on Mir. He returned to Earth on Space Shuttle Mission [[STS-84]].

''Atlantis'' carried the [[SPACEHAB]] double module providing additional middeck locker space for secondary experiments. During the five days of docked operations with Mir, the crews transferred water and supplies from one spacecraft to the other. A [[spacewalk]] by Linenger and one of his Russian [[cosmonaut]] crewmates occurred after the departure of ''Atlantis''.

The STS-81 mission included several experiments in the fields of advanced technology, [[Earth science]]s, fundamental [[biology]], [[human life science]]s, [[microgravity]], and [[Outline of space science|space sciences]]. It was hoped that data would supply insight for the planning and development of the [[International Space Station]], Earth-based sciences of human and biological processes, and the advancement of commercial technology.

On January 18, while ''Atlantis'' was docked to Mir, Grunsfeld placed a telephone call to the [[National Public Radio|NPR]] show ''[[Car Talk]]'', hosted by two of Grunsfeld's fellow [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] alumni, [[Tom and Ray Magliozzi]].<ref name="io9 - The time an astronaut called into ''Car Talk'' from the Space Shuttle">{{Cite web |url=http://io9.gizmodo.com/5924311/the-time-an-astronaut-called-into-car-talk-from-the-space-shuttle |title=io9 - The time an astronaut called into ''Car Talk'' from the Space Shuttle |work=io9 |date=July 9, 2012 |access-date=May 28, 2016 |archive-date=June 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615143432/http://io9.gizmodo.com/5924311/the-time-an-astronaut-called-into-car-talk-from-the-space-shuttle |url-status=live |last1=Davis |first1=Lauren }}</ref>
[[File:STS081-748-019.jpg|thumb|Atlantis docked to the Mir space station, over Saharan Africa]]
[[File:STS81 Linenger Blaha Wisoff.jpg|right|thumb|Mission Specialists Jerry Linenger, John Blaha and Jeff Wisoff gather around the wardroom table, sampling Russian food.]]
STS-81 involved the transfer of {{convert|2710|kg}} of logistics to and from the Mir, the largest transfer of items to date. During the docked phase, {{convert|635|kg}} of water, {{convert|516.1|kg}} of U.S. science equipment, {{convert|1000.7|kg}} of Russian logistics along with {{convert|121.7|kg}} of miscellaneous material was transferred to Mir. Returned to Earth aboard ''Atlantis'' was {{convert|570.0|kg}} of U.S. science material, {{convert|404.5|kg}} of Russian logistics and {{convert|97.3|kg}} of miscellaneous material.

First Shuttle flight of 1997 highlighted by return of U.S. astronaut John Blaha to Earth after 118-day stay aboard Russian Space Station Mir and the largest transfer to date of logistics between the two spacecraft. ''Atlantis'' also returned carrying the first plants to complete a life cycle in space&nbsp;— a crop of wheat grown from seed to seed. This fifth of nine planned dockings continued Phase 1B of the NASA/[[Russian Aviation and Space Agency|Russian Space Agency]] cooperative effort, with Linenger becoming the third U.S. astronaut in succession to live on Mir. Same payload configuration flown on previous docking flight&nbsp;— featuring SPACEHAB Double module&nbsp;— flown again.

Blaha joined Mir 22 crew of Commander [[Valeri Korzun]] and Flight Engineer [[Aleksandr Kaleri]] on September 19, 1996, when he arrived there with the crew of STS-79. Linenger worked with the Mir 22 crew until the arrival in February of the Mir 23 crew of Commander [[Vasili Tsibliev]], Flight Engineer [[Aleksandr Lazutkin]] and German researcher Reinhold Ewald. Ewald returned to Earth with the Mir 22 cosmonauts after a brief stay on the station. Astronaut Michael Foale replaced Linenger on Mir when the STS-84 mission arrived in May 1997.

[[File:STS81 Atlantis Landing.jpg|right|thumb|Space shuttle ''Atlantis'' touches down at the KSC to conclude the STS-81 mission.]]
Docking occurred at 22:55 EST, January 14, followed by hatch opening at 00:57 January 15. Linenger officially traded places at 04:45 with Blaha who spent 118 days on the station and 128 days total on-orbit. During five days of mated operations, crews transferred nearly 6,000 pounds (2,722 kilograms) of logistics to Mir, including around {{convert|725|kg}} of water; around {{convert|516|kg}} of U.S. science equipment; and {{convert|1001|kg}} of Russian logistical equipment. About {{convert|1100|kg}} of materials returned with ''Atlantis'' from Mir.

Crew also tested on Shuttle the Treadmill Vibration Isolation and Stabilization System (TVIS), designed for use in the Russian Service Module of the International Space Station. Another activity related to International Space Station involved firing the orbiter's small vernier jet thrusters during mated operations to gather engineering data.

Undocking occurred at 09:15 EST, January 19, followed by fly around of Mir.

No significant in-flight anomalies were experienced with ''Atlantis''.

== Wake-up calls ==
NASA began a tradition of playing music to astronauts during the [[Gemini program]], which was first used to wake up a flight crew during [[Apollo 15]].<ref name="chronology">{{cite news
| first = Colin
| last = Fries
| title = Chronology of Wakeup Calls
| date = June 25, 2007
| publisher = NASA
| url = https://history.nasa.gov/wakeup%20calls.pdf
| access-date = August 13, 2007
| archive-date = June 20, 2010
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100620230459/http://history.nasa.gov/wakeup%20calls.pdf
| url-status = live
}}</ref>
Each track is specially chosen, often by their families, and usually has a special meaning to an individual member of the crew, or is applicable to their daily activities.<ref name="chronology" />
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Flight Day
! Song
! Artist/Composer
|-
| Day 2
| "[[Free Ride (song)|Free Ride]]"
| [[Edgar Winter|The Edgar Winter Group]]
|-
| Day 3
| "It Keeps You Runnin'"
| [[The Doobie Brothers]]
|-
| Day 4
| "[[Hitchin' a Ride (Vanity Fare song)|Hitchin' a Ride]]"
| [[Vanity Fare]]
|-
| Day 5
| "[[Celebration (Kool & the Gang song)|Celebration]]"
| [[Kool and the Gang]]
|-
| Day 6
| "[[I Got You (I Feel Good)]]"
| [[James Brown]]
|-
| Day 7
| "[[Mack the Knife]]"
| [[Bobby Darin]]
|-
| Day 8
| "[[Ticket to Ride (song)|Ticket to Ride]]"
| [[The Beatles]]
|-
| Day 9
| "My Favorite Marsha"
| The Alison Brown Quartet
|-
| Day 10
| "[[The Banana Boat Song]]"
| [[Harry Belafonte]]
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Spaceflight}}
*[[List of human spaceflights]]
*[[List of Space Shuttle missions]]
*[[Outline of space science]]

==References==
{{Include-NASA}}
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-81/mission-sts-81.html NASA mission summary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070520090649/http://science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/missions/sts-81/mission-sts-81.html |date=May 20, 2007 }}
* [http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle81.htm STS-81 Video Highlights] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013171259/http://www.nss.org/resources/library/shuttlevideos/shuttle81.htm |date=October 13, 2007 }}

{{Shuttle-Mir}}
{{Space Shuttle Atlantis}}
{{Crewed Mir flights}}
{{All U.S. Space Shuttle Missions}}
{{Orbital launches in 1997}}

{{Use American English|date=January 2014}}

[[Category:Spacecraft launched in 1997]]
[[Category:Space Shuttle missions|STS-081]]