Near-Flawless Shuttle Mission Brings Home Mountain of Data
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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — Space shuttle Columbia and its crew of seven returned to Earth on Thursday after a nearly flawless 16-day science mission that was overshadowed by news from Mir and Mars.
It was the second time around for the shuttle, the crew and the laboratory experiments aboard: In April, their mission had to be cut short after just four days because of a defective power generator.
“To be able to say that we’ve done what we set out to do, it is a sense of satisfaction,” said shuttle commander James Halsell Jr. “All the scientific objectives were met for the mission--and more.”
The astronauts conducted experiments on fire, metals, plants and crystals, toiling round-the-clock from the moment they arrived in orbit July 1, six days after Mir was damaged in a collision and three days before the Mars Pathfinder landed.
Even the shuttle’s sunrise landing was eclipsed: As the shuttle touched down, the three men on Mir struggled to regain control of the power-stricken Russian space station.
“I think we added a lot to science, and we don’t feel upstaged,” crewman Michael Gernhardt said.
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