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This Week in NASA History: STS-61C Launches – Jan. 12, 1986

This week in 1986, space shuttle Columbia, mission STS-61C, launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
This week in 1986, space shuttle Columbia, mission STS-61C, launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.

This week in 1986, space shuttle Columbia, mission STS-61C, launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The STS-61C mission successfully deployed the SATCOM KU-I satellite, which was attached to the Payload Assist Module-D2. Other payloads included Materials Science Laboratory-2, the infrared Imaging Experiment and Hand-held Protein Crystal Growth experiment. Today, the Payload Operations Integration Center at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center 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. 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)