Bruce Buckingham
          Kennedy Space Center, Florida                Dec. 27, 1989

          KSC RELEASE NO. 137-89

               "We begin the new decade with dedication to our mission and
          pride of our past accomplishment."

                                     --- Center Director Forrest McCartney.

             KSC CLOSES OUT 1989 AND GEARS UP FOR THE COMING NEW DECADE

               As America's space program steps boldly into a new decade,
          KSC's accomplishments in 1989 will be the cornerstone upon which
          the dreams and hopes of this country's space future will be
          built.

               Spearheading the successes of the past year were the five
          Space Shuttle missions. The shuttle flights included two
          planetary missions, two Department of Defense dedicated launches,
          and a mission to deploy a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite.

               In addition to the shuttle launches, KSC played a leading
          role in the successful launch of the Cosmic Background Explorer
          (COBE) by a Delta rocket from Vandenberg AFB, Ca., and the launch
          of a FLTSATCOM from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on an
          Atlas/Centaur booster (AC-68).

               At the beginning of the year, NASA had laid out an
          aggressive launch schedule for KSC. In order to continue the
          success of the previous year -- when the world witnessed the
          shuttle's successful return to space -- 1989 would have to
          provide an even more impressive show of resiliency.

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                       ECONOMIC IMPACT AND CONTRACT EXTENSIONS

               The Kennedy Space Center continued to be a major factor in
          the Central Florida economy. During the past year, KSC employed
          over 18,000 workers, both civil service and contractor. Contracts
          and employment generated a $1.24 billion boost to Florida's
          economy, of which approximately $750 million remained in Brevard
          County.

               The major contractors at KSC continued to provide valuable
          services to the nation's space effort. Lockheed Space Operations,
          Co., the Shuttle Processing Contractor, had its contract extended
          for three years through September 1992. EG&G Florida, Inc., the
          Base Operations Contractor, had its existing contract extended
          for the eighth year, making it effective through the end of 1990.
          The Payload Ground Processing Contract, awarded to McDonnell
          Douglas Space Systems Co. in 1987, was extended for the first
          time, adding an additional three years to the existing contract.
          McDonnell Douglas will continue to provide ground support, test
          and integration for payload operations at Kennedy Space Center
          through the end of 1992.

                 BUILDING, MODIFICATION, AND REFURBISHMENT PROJECTS

               Numerous building projects continued at KSC through 1989,
          the largest of them being the Operations Support Building which
          will be opened for occupancy four months ahead of schedule in
          early 1990. This 300,000-square-foot facility will provide office
          space for about 1,800 employees currently working out of
          temporary trailers and renovated boxcars.

               On Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, construction began on a
          new spacecraft x-ray facility. The $1.9 million contract
          --awarded to David Boland, Inc. of Titusville, Fla. -- will also
          cover the building's design for non-destructive x-ray testing of
          various spacecraft hardware, such as upper stage motors used to
          boost spacecraft into higher orbits.

               On the human side, KSC identified a special need of its
          employees and worked vigorously to see the solution come to pass.
          Through the NASA/KSC Exchange Council, an agreement was reached
          in June 1989 with Tutor Time International, Inc. of Salt Lake
          City, Utah, for the design, construction, staffing and operation
          of a child day care center at KSC. In September, ground was
          broken for the 6,600 square foot facility to be located outside
          the security perimeter in the KSC Industrial Area. The

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          establishment of a full-time child day care center at KSC was the
          result of an employee suggestion. It is expected to open in
          January 1990.

               In the shuttle processing arena, the Orbiter Maintenance and
          Refurbishment Facility was targeted for modification and eventual
          upgrade to Orbiter Processing Facility status. In preparation for
          this improvement, work platforms, service structures and other
          equipment were shipped in from Vandenberg AFB, arriving at KSC on
          Nov. 10. By using the existing structures from the California
          facility, NASA is expected to realize a saving of about $3.7
          million.

               The most challenging modifications were those made at launch
          pad 39-A which underwent 138 significant modifications at a cost
          of about $50 million. Pad A was the launching point for the first
          24 successful shuttle missions. The complex was temporarily
          deactivated following the Challenger mishap as mission managers
          chose to concentrate efforts to first modify Pad B for the
          resumption of flight. Some of the modifications to Pad A include:

          * improvements to the environmental control system in the payload
          changeout room on the RSS;

          * addition of a heater to the solid rocket joint umbilical;

          * added safety features to the crew emergency egress system and
          the addition of two slidewire baskets;

          * improvements to the slidewire bunker area;

          * service umbilicals to support the orbiter Columbia's fifth
          cryogenic fuel cell.

               In addition to the resumption of pad A's support for shuttle
          launches, KSC's third mobile launcher platform was declared ready
          to support the agency's aggressive 1990 schedule. Pad A will next
          be used for launch of the STS-32 mission in January.

               A key component in meeting the 1990 launch schedule is the
          ability to quickly replace orbiter tiles damaged late in the
          flow. KSC's Thermal Protection System Facility upgraded its
          capabilities this past year and began on-site production of high
          and low temperature reusable surface insulation tiles. In order
          to avoid having to fly replacement tiles in from production
          facilities in California, KSC now has the tools necessary to make
          its own tiles from scratch, thus saving the agency up to three
          days turn around time.

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                        ORBITER MODIFICATIONS AND PROCESSING

               Flying on the orbiter Columbia in January 1990 will be the
          first tile produced at KSC. But with that tile, about 258
          modifications new to Columbia since early 1986 will also be
          flown. Of those modifications, including the list of critical
          return-to-flight vehicle improvements, about 16 modifications are
          unique to the agency's oldest orbiter.

               Return-to-flight modifications were conducted on Columbia
          throughout the past year. These included upgrades to the
          electrical system, cockpit computer keyboards, new on-board
          cryogenic fuel cells and new auxiliary power unit controllers.
          Also, in order to decrease brake wear, the orbiter's axles were
          stiffened on the landing gear and a dozen extra clamps were added
          to Columbia's hydraulic braking lines. Also, larger protective
          tiles were installed on the elevons leading edges and the
          trailing edges of the wings. Columbia's payload bay doors and
          fuselage, originally covered with over 2,300 small white diced
          tiles, were eventually recovered with thermal protective
          blankets. In addition, a reinforced carbon-carbon chin panel was
          installed to replace about 40 tiles between the nose cap and nose
          landing gear doors.

                 FIVE SUCCESSFUL LAUNCHES, FIVE SUCCESSFUL MISSIONS

               Five successful flights of the Space Shuttle highlighted the
          center's accomplishments in 1989. Each mission ended successfully
          at Edwards AFB, Ca., after five days in orbit (with the exception
          of STS-30's four day mission).

               The following is a brief summary of each mission:

          *  STS-29 -- The year's first mission began with the launch of
          Discovery on March 13 and the successful deployment of the third
          Tracking and Data Relay Spacecraft (TDRS-4). This spacecraft will
          allow near continuous communication links with earth and
          low-orbiting spacecraft.

          *  STS-30 -- Less than two months later, Atlantis was launched on
          May 4. Atlantis deployed the nation's first planetary spacecraft,
          Magellan, in over 10 years. Magellan is now speeding on its way
          to map the surface of Earth's closet planetary neighbor, Venus.

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          *  STS-28 -- Columbia was launched on the year's first Department
          of Defense dedicated mission on Aug. 8. This marked the first
          flight of Columbia since Space Shuttle mission 61-C in January
          1986.

          *  STS-34 -- The second planetary mission of the year was sent on
          its way by the orbiter Atlantis. On Oct. 18, the Galileo
          spacecraft began its six-year journey to the planet Jupiter. As
          Galileo approaches the solar system's largest planet, a probe
          will be released to parachute toward the Jovian surface sending
          valuable information back to earth until it is crushed by the
          enormous pressure of Jupiter atmosphere.

          *  STS-33 -- The year's last shuttle mission was another DOD
          mission. The orbiter Discovery was launched on Nov. 22.

                             PAYLOADS PROCESSING AT KSC

               As the three orbiters were being processed and readied for
          flight, the payloads world was also extremely active. Here,
          technicians spent hours upon hours testing and retesting
          components that will experience the extreme heat and cold of
          space. Of the payloads processed and launched at KSC during the
          past year, all are still performing perfectly. The TDRS
          communications spacecraft (launched on mission STS-29) is now in
          its proper orbit and functioning without error.

               The planetary spacecraft, Magellan and Galileo, are also
          performing without problem and both are speeding toward their
          intended encounters with their respective planets, Venus and
          Jupiter. These very specialized scientific spacecraft were sent
          through extensive testing and scrutiny at KSC, first in the
          center's Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility (SAEF-2)
          and then in the Vertical Processing Facility (VPF).

               Magellan, launched aboard STS-30 and deployed for its
          journey to Venus, marked the resumption of the United States'
          reach to another planetary body since 1978. It kicks off a core
          program of solar system exploration involving NASA and
          organizations from the U.S. and the international community. The
          Magellan Venus Radar Mapper will yield the most detailed and
          comprehensive picture to date of the cloud covered planet.
          Mission objectives include learning more about the structure and
          geological history of the planet; its geophysics, such as density
          distribution; and its small-scale surface physics, such as
          temperature and roughness. By year's end, Magellan will be

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          halfway to its rendezvous with our sister planet. Magellan is
          expected to reach Venus in August 1990.

               Galileo was launched aboard the orbiter Atlantis on mission
          STS-34. Fueled by nearly 48 pounds of plutonium-238 for the
          generation of heat for electrical power, Galileo began its six
          year long journey to our Solar System's largest planet, Jupiter.
          Throughout the trip, Galileo will examine the celestial bodies it
          encounters including the asteroid Gaspra and the planet Venus
          when it performs a gravitational assist flyby.

               As Galileo approaches Jupiter in 1995, a probe will be
          released to parachute into the dense Jovian atmosphere. The
          probe's instruments will measure atmospheric temperatures, light
          and radio frequency interference from lightning.

               On the Galileo mother ship, cameras will capture details of
          the planet and her moons at a resolution many times greater than
          that seen during the Voyager spacecraft flybys in the 1970s. As
          Galileo prepares to enter orbit around Jupiter, it will pass
          within 22,000 miles of Europa and 620 miles of Io, two of the
          large Galilean moons.

               The Deep Space Network (DSN) at the Jet Propulsion
          Laboratory, California, will monitor the progress of both
          Magellan and Galileo with the support of the huge
          230-foot-diameter antennas at Goldstone, Ca., Spain and
          Australia. However, KSC is the home of a DSN station with a much
          lower profile. The terminal, referred to as "MIL-71," is located
          at the MILA tracking station at KSC. Using the tracking antennas
          of MILA and linked to the other DSN stations through the NASA
          Communications Network (NASCOM), the MIL-71 station supported
          both the Magellan and the Galileo missions from the closure of
          the orbiter's payload bay doors, through spacecraft deployment,
          the upper stage burns, and finally spacecraft separation.

                          FUTURE PAYLOADS PROCESSING AT KSC

               Concurrently, several payloads slated for future missions
          also began their KSC processing in 1989. The SYNCOM-IV
          communications satellite built for the Navy by Hughes Aircraft,
          utilized the AstroTech facilities south of Titusville, Fla., for
          its initial checkout phase. It was later transferred to the
          Vertical Processing Facility's airlock in the KSC industrial area
          prior to being installed into the orbiter Columbia at Pad A.
          SYNCOM-IV is the fifth and final satellite in its class. Once on
          station in a geosynchronous orbit, it will be known as LEASAT-5.

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               Just prior to SYNCOM's move to the VPF's airlock, perhaps
          the most significant scientific payload slated for launch next
          year arrived at KSC's shuttle landing facility and was
          transported with great care to the VPF's clean room. The Hubble
          Space Telescope (HST), the world's largest and most sophisticated
          orbiting telescope, finally arrived at KSC after years of delay.

               At the VPF, HST began a series of rigorous tests and
          validations. Under the protective covering of a translucent bag,
          HST passed a significant test when it was first powered-up at KSC
          and underwent a series of functional checks of its on-board
          science instruments on Oct. 28. Power was also applied to the
          telescope via satellite from the HST control facility at Lockheed
          in Sunnyvale, Ca. A return data stream confirmed to controllers
          that the power was on. Performance testing was also conducted on
          the five science instruments, the telescope's pointing control
          system, and the fine guidance sensors.  Testing was completed
          Dec. 8.

               On Dec. 20, the Wide-field Planetary Camera was installed on
          HST. This camera, which weighs 600 pounds, will be used to
          photograph individual planets in our solar system or hundreds of
          galaxies at once. HST, our window to the universe, will allow
          scientists a view of the universe 10 times greater than that now
          available on Earth. HST is slated for launch on Space Shuttle
          mission STS-31 in March 1990.

               Also undergoing tests at KSC is the ASTRO-1 (STS-35) payload
          in the Operations and Checkout Building high bay. ASTRO-1 is a
          payload consisting of 4 optical instruments capable of performing
          independent or simultaneous observations of selected targets.

                       EXPENDABLE VEHICLES AND THEIR PAYLOADS

               At 4:56 a.m. on Sept. 25, teams from NASA and General
          Dynamics worked together to launch Atlas/Centaur (AC-68) from
          Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Complex 36. This was NASA's
          last launch of the Atlas/Centaur vehicle carrying the FLTSATCOM-8
          into earth orbit for use by the Navy. In the future, NASA will
          contract with either the Air Force or the vehicle manufacturer to
          procure expendable launch vehicles such as the Atlas/Centaur and
          related launch services. NASA will, however, retain oversight
          responsibilities for the vehicles which carry NASA payloads.

               The two-stage, liquid-fueled Atlas/Centaur has a long
          history and was used to launch a variety of technological and
          scientific spacecraft, including Surveyors to the moon, Mariners
          to Venus, Mercury and Mars, and Pioneers to Jupiter and Saturn.

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               On its final mission for NASA, Atlas/Centaur sent the
          FLTSATCOM-8 spacecraft on its way to serve as part of a
          versatile, high-capacity worldwide military communications system
          operated by the United States. FLTSATCOM, one of a series of six
          satellites now operating in orbit, will be used to provide
          instant communications between the President of the United States
          and his commanding officers located in remote stations around the
          world. FLTSATCOM's orbit is geosynchronous and it is be stationed
          at about 22,238 miles above the equator.

               Last year also saw the last launch of a NASA owned and
          managed Delta rocket when, on Nov. 18, Delta 183 was launched
          from Vandenberg AFB, Ca. The launch was successful in its attempt
          to place into orbit the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE), the
          66th spacecraft in the Explorer series. KSC workers had been
          involved for over two years in preparing the west coast facility
          for COBE. Finally, following the processing of the first and
          second stages of the Delta at KSC's Hanger M, the electrical
          mating of the two components, and a test which simulated
          in-flight events, the sections were shipped to Vandenberg for
          launch.

               Under KSC's supervision, much work went into preparing the
          Space Launch Complex 2-West for COBE and NASA's last Delta
          vehicle. Extensive refurbishment activities lasted over a year.
          Work included corrosion repair, sand-blasting and painting;
          replacement of deteriorated pad support equipment;
          recertification of pad cranes used to lift the launch vehicle and
          COBE spacecraft; repair of pad lighting systems and
          recertification of pressure vessels for helium and nitrogen used
          for the hydraulic and pneumatic systems.

               The launch went perfectly and COBE is currently working on
          its assignment -- a one year to two year mission to gather
          information to possibly answer questions like: Was there a
          primeval explosion that started the universe expansion? What
          started the formation of galaxies? What caused galaxies to be
          arranged in giant clusters?

               The Delta launch vehicle was originally designed and built
          for NASA as an improved version of the Air Force's Thor-Able.
          Delta first flew in 1960. There have been more NASA Delta
          launches than all other launch vehicles in its class combined.

                     SPINOFFS, CELSS, AND OTHER FUTURE PROJECTS

               As a result of the intense experimentation in the world of
          payloads and the increased awareness of continued safe manned

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          flight, science has reaped marvelous benefits from various
          spinoff technologies.

               But to simply reap the benefits is not enough. A way was
          needed to carry the word from NASA to the outside commercial
          community. As a result, KSC and the State of Florida signed a
          Memorandum of Understanding for the transfer of NASA technology.
          This agreement was formalized during a meeting by Center Director
          Forrest McCartney and Florida Governor Bob Martinez on July 18 at
          KSC. It provides for the continuation of the ongoing NASA
          Technology Utilization program to transfer NASA technology to
          Florida's governmental and industrial organizations in a timely
          manner.

               Examples of possible benefits spun-off from NASA derived
          inventions and technology include: advanced breathing packs for
          fire fighters; running shoes that lessen stress on legs; heat
          pipe technology that assisted a candy maker; sun glasses that
          decrease the risk of late-life blindness by diminishing
          ultraviolet rays; home solar energy applications; insulation for
          both home and camping; and an aerial color infrared mapping
          system used for inventory of Florida citrus groves.

               NASA technology developed during experimentation at KSC has
          also provided improvements to the health and life styles of the
          aging. During an in depth three day conference co-sponsored by
          NASA/KSC from Jan. 30 - Feb. 1 at Lake Buena Vista, Fla., several
          KSC technical managers presented a forum for discussing various
          issues ranging from communications to health care services for
          space colonization.

               Later in the year, NASA/KSC announced the reaching of a
          preliminary understanding with the medical community by the
          creation of a new Space Medicine Institute. This agreement will
          enhance NASA's role in responding to research in health needs and
          create closer ties between the health and space communities.
          Sharing of knowledge and the ability to match health problems
          with existing technology is the primary goal of the partnership.
          The unique match will improve health care here on earth and in
          space.

               Another agreement was reached between KSC/NASA and the
          Florida American Cancer Society. This agreement calls for the
          transfer of technology from the space program to the medical
          profession and industry to assist in solving problems associated
          with cancer prevention, detection and treatment.

               Continuing studies in rocket triggered lightning research
          entered the seventh year in 1989. The NASA-sponsored program
          resumed from the pad on the shore of Mosquito Lagoon, 8 miles
          north of the Vehicle Assembly Building. A space age version of

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          Ben Franklin's key-on-a-kite-string, the program entails
          launching three-foot-tall solid fueled rockets into thunderstorms
          while trailing a wire to the ground. The research program grew
          out of NASA's desire to improve lightning protection systems for
          KSC facilities and forecasting lightning potential during
          launches.

               First in January then again in August, Kennedy Space Center
          scientists from the Controlled Ecological Life Support System
          (CELSS) project, harvested their second and third crops of dwarf
          wheat -- and it was grown without soil in a computer controlled
          biomass chamber.

               The two-story, bubble-shaped sphere, located in Hanger L on
          Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, was once a test chamber for the
          Mercury and Gemini programs. Using the specially developed
          environment, strictly controlled by computers, KSC scientists and
          technicians learned how to deliver nutrients to seedlings and
          monitor the growth and gaseous outputs of dwarf wheat plants with
          minimum human intervention. Following successful wheat crops, the
          CELSS scientists began chamber research with soy beans.

               Since future spacecraft will not have enough room to grow
          traditional plants in soil, the CELSS experimenters carefully
          analyzed the interaction of plants, nutrients, computer controls,
          lighting, nutrient delivery systems and even how humans affect
          the system by their mere presence. In the later case, the system
          was designed to adjust for even the slightest increase in carbon
          dioxide in the air from technicians breathing.

               Efforts by other KSC workers in 1989 should provide answers
          to other scientists who are questioning the circulation of air in
          zero-gravity. The Chromosomes and Plant Cell Division in Space
          experiment (CHROMEX) was designed to create an atmosphere
          exchange system that circulates cabin air around plants inside
          the CELSS chamber. This accomplishment will bring scientists a
          step closer in understanding how to grow plants in space.

               Still ahead are needed answers to intriguing questions like:
          Can several types of plants be grown in one chamber or will space
          age farms require the separation of plants? Answers to this and
          other extremely important questions will need to be found before
          building lunar bases or sending men to Mars. KSC's Biomedical
          Operations and Research Office will be studying the multitude of
          possible solutions to this dilemma in the coming year.

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                             APOLLO 11 20TH ANNIVERSARY

               But as NASA marched on into the future, triumphs of the past
          were remembered. July 16, 1989 marked the launch of the Apollo 11
          20th Anniversary which landed the first humans on the moon and
          returned them safely to earth. In remembrance of this monumental
          occasion, KSC hosted the return of the original Apollo 11 crew.
          Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Mike Collins were greeted by
          thousands of cheering KSC employees and open house guests as they
          recalled the experience of the century. The day-long celebration
          reminded all Americans of the incredible, unequaled feat of the
          Apollo program.

                                    LOOKING AHEAD

               Now, as KSC looks to the future, the possibilities seem
          endless. Just around the corner is the Space Station, and further
          ahead a possible lunar base and human mission to Mars. When the
          time comes for these grand explorations, their beginnings may be
          from KSC.

               KSC will undertake the challenge of the future one step at a
          time. Next year, NASA plans a record number of Space Shuttle
          missions. Over 55 astronauts are scheduled to begin their journey
          into space from KSC's Launch Complex 39 and a long list of
          important payloads and experiments will be serviced here.
          Astronomical sciences will be the focus of later missions. Hubble
          Space Telescope (STS-31) will bring into clear view by 10 fold a
          new look at our universe. Then two star-searching devices --
          Astro-1 and the Broad Band X-Ray Telescope (STS-35) will be
          deployed. The Gamma Ray Observatory (STS-37) will study stellar
          and intergalactic phenomena through deep space. Two final DOD
          missions (STS-36, STS-38) are also scheduled for launch next
          year. Then, scientific research will focus on the Sun with the
          deployment of the Ulysses (STS-41) spacecraft. Spacelab Life
          Sciences-1 (STS-40) and the International Microgravity Laboratory
          (STS-42) will round out the year.