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This Week in NASA History: ASTRO-2 Launches – Mar. 2, 1995

This week in 1995, the ASTRO-2 Spacelab was launched aboard the space shuttle Endeavour, mission STS-67.
This week in 1995, the ASTRO-2 Spacelab was launched aboard the space shuttle Endeavour, mission STS-67, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

This week in 1995, the ASTRO-2 Spacelab was launched aboard the space shuttle Endeavour, mission STS-67, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. ASTRO-2 mission included observation and remote exploration of the universe in the ultraviolet wavelengths of light. Here, the Instrument Pointing System, Hopkins Ultraviolet Telescope, Star Tracker, Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope, Wisconsin Ultraviolet Photo-Polarimeter Experiment, and Integrated Radiator System are visible on the Spacelab pallet. The Igloo, which supported the package of experiments, can be seen in the center foreground. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center supervised development of the Astro observatory and managed Astro missions. Today, the Payload Operations Integration Center at Marshall serves as “science central” for the International Space Station, working 24/7, 365 days a year in support of the orbiting laboratory’s science experiments. After 20 years of continuous human presence, the space station remains the sole space-based proving ground and stepping stone toward achieving the goals of the Artemis program. The NASA History Program is responsible for generating, disseminating, and preserving NASA’s remarkable history and providing a comprehensive understanding of the institutional, cultural, social, political, economic, technological, and scientific aspects of NASA’s activities in aeronautics and space. For more pictures like this one and to connect to NASA’s history, visit the Marshall History Program’s webpage. (NASA)