In this image from September 5, 1983, Guion “Guy” Bluford checks out the sample pump on the constant circulation electrophoresis system (CFES) experiment in the middeck of the Earth-orbiting area shuttle bus Challenger. Credit: NASA
In this 40-year-old image from September 5, 1983, Guion “Guy” Bluford checks out the sample pump on the constant circulation electrophoresis system (CFES) experiment in the middeck of the Earth-orbiting area shuttle bus Challenger.
Simply over forty years ago, on August 30, 1983, he launched from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, becoming the very first African American to fly in space. Bluford belonged to NASAs “Thirty-Five New Guys” — the 1978 astronaut class, which had the first African American, the first Asian American, and the first females astronauts.
Area shuttle bus Challengers 3rd flight was the very first to have its starts in darkness, as NASAs eighth space shuttle launch illuminated the Florida sky at 2:32 a.m. EDT, August 30, 1983. The STS-8 crew included Commander Richard Truly, pilot Daniel Brandenstein, and mission professionals Dale Gardner, Guy Bluford, and William Thornton. Credit: NASA
Throughout the STS-8 mission, the team released the Indian National Satellite INSAT-1B, ran the Canadian-built Remote Manipulator System with the Payload Flight Test Article, operated the CFES, performed medical measurements to comprehend biophysiological effects of spaceflight, and activated 4 “Getaway Special” canisters. STS-8 completed 98 orbits of the Earth in 145 hours before landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on September 5, 1983.
