For the STS-9 mission Columbia was once again back in orbit.The launch occurred at ll a.m. EST, Nov. 28, 1983, after a 2-month delay because of a nozzle problem with one of the SRBs. This necessitated moving the vehicle back to the Vehicle Assembly Building where the nozzle was replaced.

The mission was devoted entirely to Spacelab l, a joint NASA/European Space Agency (ESA) program designed to demonstrate the ability to conduct advanced scientific research in space, with astronauts and payload specialists working in the Spacelab module.

Columbia landed on Runway 17 at Edwards AFB, on Dec. 8, 1983, at 3:47 p.m. PST, completing 166 orbits and traveling 4.3 million miles.

The Crew

The 6-member crew -- a manned space flight record at the time -- included John W. Young, commander, on his second Shuttle flight; Brewster H. Shaw, pilot; Owen Garriott and Robert A. Parker, both mission specialists; and Byron K. Lichtenberg and Ulf Merbold payload specialists -- the first two non-astronauts to fly on the Shuttle. Merbold, a citizen of West Germany, also was the first foreign citizen to participate in a Shuttle flight. Lichtenberg was a researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The Artwork

This is the official insignia for STS-9, the major payload of which is Spacelab 1, depicted in the cargo bay of the Columbia. The nine stars and the path of the orbiter tell the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence. Astronaut John W. Young is crew commander, Brewster Shaw, Jr., pilot. NASA Astronauts Owen K. Garriott and Robert A. Parker are mission specialists. Byron K. Lichtenberg of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Ulf Merbold of the Republic of West Germany are the Spacelab 1 payload specialists. Launch has been set for late 1983. Merbold is a physicist representing the European Space Agency (ESA).