STS-48

STS-48
	The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) deployment
Names	Space Transportation System-48
Mission type	UARS satellite deployment
Operator	NASA
COSPAR ID	1991-063A
SATCAT no.	21700
Mission duration	5 days, 8 hours, 27 minutes, 38 seconds
Distance travelled	3,530,369 km (2,193,670 mi)
Orbits completed	81
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Space Shuttle Discovery
Launch mass	108,890 kg (240,060 lb)
Landing mass	87,440 kg (192,770 lb)
Payload mass	7,865 kg (17,339 lb)
Crew
Crew size	5
Members	John Oliver Creighton; Kenneth S. Reightler Jr.; Charles D. Gemar; James Buchli; Mark N. Brown;
Start of mission
Launch date	September 12, 1991, 23:11:04 UTC (7:11:04 pm EDT)
Launch site	Kennedy, LC-39A
Contractor	Rockwell International
End of mission
Landing date	September 18, 1991, 07:38:42 UTC (12:38:42 am PDT)
Landing site	Edwards, Runway 22
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric orbit
Regime	Low Earth orbit
Perigee altitude	575 km (357 mi)
Apogee altitude	580 km (360 mi)
Inclination	57.00°
Period	96.20 minutes
Instruments
	Air Force Maui Optical Site (AMOS); Ascent Particle Monitor (APM); Cosmic Ray Effects and Activation Monitor (CREAM); Investigations into Polymer Membrane Processing (IPMP); Middeck 0-Gravity Dynamics Experiment (MODE); Physiological and Anatomical Rodent Experiment (PARE); Protein Crystal Growth (PCG II-2); Shuttle Activation Monitor (SAM);
	; STS-48 mission patch; ; Back row; Charles D. Gemar, James Buchli; Front row: Mark N. Brown, John Oliver Creighton, Kenneth S. Reightler Jr. Space Shuttle program ← STS-43 (42) STS-44 (44) →

STS-48 was a Space Shuttle mission that launched on September 12, 1991, from Kennedy Space Center, Florida. The orbiter was Space Shuttle Discovery on her 13th flight. The primary payload was the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS). The mission landed on September 18 at 12:38 a.m. EDT at Edwards Air Force Base on runway 22. The mission was completed in 81 revolutions of the Earth and traveled 3,530,369 km (2,193,670 mi). The 5 astronauts carried out a number of experiments and deployed several satellites. The total launch mass was 108,890 kg (240,060 lb) and the landing mass was 87,440 kg (192,770 lb).