January 12
Columbia's astronauts rescued the Long Duration Exposure Facility by steering Columbia alongside it and having Mission Specialist Bonnie Dunbar reach out and grab it with the wire fingers of the Orbiter's mechanical arm. ("Shuttle Crew Grabs Failing Lab in Space," Decatur Daily, January 12, 1990)
January 12
The Marshall Center created the Mission Operations Laboratory to further support the Center's increasing involvement in space flight mission operations. (MSFC Management Announcement, January 12, 1990)
January 14
A 24-hour simulation of the Astro-1 mission was conducted January 14-15. The purpose of this test was to simulate mission replanning problems. Participants included science replanning representatives from the four instrument teams, MSFC mission planning personnel and Payload Operations Control Center Cadre members. (See MSFC History Office Microfiche #2127, "Notable MSFC Events During 1990," January 22, 1990)
January 17
Phase A Contract final reviews for the Advanced Launch System Solid Rocket Booster Systems Definition Study were conducted at the Marshall Center January 17-19. Hercules, Atlantic Research, Chemical Systems Thiokol, and Aerojet Solid Propulsion each presented a summary of the results of the 9-month study contracts. (See MSFC History Office Microfiche #2127, "Notable MSFC Events During 1990," January 22, 1990)
January 17
Marshall's Joe T. Galey and Teledyne Brown's Charlie Glass received awards from the NASA Space Flight Safety Panel. Galey's and Glass' insistence on proper testing of flight hardware led to audits at 15 metal bolt suppliers and fraud convictions against at least four contracts. ("Managers Here Win NASA Safety Awards," Huntsville News, January 18, 1990)
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