{"id":566129,"date":"2023-11-27T13:00:32","date_gmt":"2023-11-27T18:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/?p=566129"},"modified":"2023-11-28T10:46:45","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T15:46:45","slug":"spacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/spacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation\/","title":{"rendered":"Spacelab 1: A Model for International Cooperation"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-article-hero-header nasa-gb-align-full bg-carbon-90 width-full maxw-full color-mode-dark hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-article-hero-header\">\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper width-full maxw-full minh-tablet grid-container minh-tablet flex-column padding-0\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-foreground-wrapper display-flex flex-direction-column\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-container grid-container-block margin-top-auto width-full maxw-desktop-lg padding-y-9 padding-x-3 desktop:padding-x-3 z-400\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"z-400 grid-col-12 tablet:grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-7 z-400\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-0\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"label color-spacesuit-white margin-bottom-2\">9 Min Read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"heading-41 line-height-md color-spacesuit-white-important\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSpacelab 1: A Model for International Cooperation\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 tablet:grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-5\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"skrim-overlay skrim-left mobile-skrim-top z-200\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1263\" src=\"https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=1920&h=1263&fit=clip&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint\" class=\"attachment-1536x1536 size-1536x1536\" alt=\"Astronauts John Young and Ulf Merbold on STS-9\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 56% 64%; object-position: 56% 64%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=1920&h=1263&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1920w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=300&h=197&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 300w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=768&h=505&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 768w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=1024&h=674&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1024w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=1536&h=1010&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1536w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=400&h=263&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 400w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=600&h=395&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 600w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=900&h=592&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 900w, https:\/\/images-assets.nasa.gov\/image\/s09-03-075\/s09-03-075~large.jpg?w=1200&h=789&fit=crop&crop=faces%2Cfocalpoint 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" loading=\"eager\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"padding-y-3 padding-x-3\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-container grid-container-block padding-x-0\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figcaption class=\"hds-caption maxw-mobile desktop:padding-x-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0 color-carbon-30\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div><figcaption>Astronaut John W. Young (left), STS-9 crew commander; and Ulf Merbold, payload specialist, enjoy a meal in the middeck of the Earth-orbiting Space Shuttle Columbia. Merbold is a physicist from the Federal Republic of Germany, representing the European Space Agency (ESA) on this 10-day flight.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-credits color-spacesuit-white-important\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Credits: <\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>NASA<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Forty years ago, in 1983, the Space Shuttle Columbia flew its first international spaceflight, <a href=\"\/mission\/sts-9\">STS-9<\/a>. The mission included\u2014for the first time\u2014the European Space Agency\u2019s Spacelab pressurized module and featured more than 70 experiments from American, Canadian, European, and Japanese scientists. Europeans were particularly proud of this \u201cremarkable step\u201d because \u201cNASA, the most famous space agency on the globe,\u201d included the laboratory on an early Shuttle mission. NASA was equally thrilled with the Spacelab and called the effort \u201chistory’s largest and most comprehensive multinational space project.\u201d The Spacelab became a unifying force for all the participating nations, scientists, and astronauts. As explained by one of the mission\u2019s payload specialists, Ulf Merbold, while the principal investigators for the onboard experiments might be British or French, \u201cthere is no French science, and no British science [on this flight]. Science in itself is international.\u201d Scientists flying on the mission, and those who had experiments on board, were working cooperatively for the benefit of humanity. As then Vice-President George H. W. Bush explained, \u201cThe knowledge Spacelab will bring back from its many missions will belong to all mankind.”<a href=\"#note1\"><sup data-fn=\"c14d5a24-c0da-41a3-9319-82a5a711bce2\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><\/a><sup><a href=\"#note1\">1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"nasa-gb-align-center padding-y-3 maxw-full width-full display-flex flex-align-center hds-module wp-block-nasa-blocks-blockquote\"><div class=\"grid-container grid-container-block display-flex flex-column flex-justify-center padding-0\">\n\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:display-flex mobile:display-block\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"blockquote-icon margin-bottom-3\">\n\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"tablet:square-4 square-4 margin-right-3\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 3000 3000\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 3000 3000;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"> <g> <path d=\"M586.7,1429.7c-10.7,1.5-21.4,2.8-33.9,4.5c6.9-26.6,12.7-50.7,19.5-74.6c32.4-114.1,78.5-222.2,146.8-319.5 c90.2-128.5,202.5-235.3,327.7-329.1c8.4-6.3,16.7-12.6,25.3-19.1c-66.3-105.1-131.5-208.6-197.3-313.1c-3.5,1.2-5.5,1.6-7.2,2.6 C714.4,469,576.1,575.7,456,705.3c-126,135.9-226.2,289.1-303,457.8c-98.8,217.1-151.3,444-147.2,683.3 c1.7,100.5,12.9,199.6,41.1,296.3C93.7,2303,182.2,2433,326.7,2520.1c176.9,106.7,366.8,126.8,563.4,70.5 c150.9-43.2,260.9-138.9,327.2-282.5c33.4-72.5,47.8-149.4,52-228.7c6.5-122.8-14.1-239.5-74.3-348.1 C1074.6,1514.5,832.7,1394.2,586.7,1429.7z\"><\/path><path d=\"M2912.5,1722c-129.9-210.9-320.2-309.4-567.9-296c-22.1,1.2-44,5.1-67.4,7.9c2.2-9.6,4-17.9,6.1-26.2 c37.9-153.6,99.3-296,198.8-420.5c77.8-97.4,167.1-182.9,265.8-258.8c15.6-12,31.3-23.9,47.9-36.5 c-66.2-105.1-131.9-209.2-197.2-312.8c-3.5,1.1-5.1,1.2-6.4,2c-167.2,95.6-316.1,213.7-443.2,358.8 c-105.1,119.9-191.1,252.3-259.5,396.3c-95.5,201-152.1,411.6-159.1,634.8c-3.9,125.5,4.8,249.7,40.1,371 c46.7,160.8,135.7,290.9,280.5,378.7c165.7,100.5,344.8,123,531.2,78.8c172.4-40.8,296.4-143.9,366.3-308.5 c28.5-67.2,40.6-138,44.6-210.5C3000.2,1953.3,2979.9,1831.4,2912.5,1722z\"><\/path><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"blockquote-content\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"font-weight-extralight line-height-sm margin-top-0 section-heading-sm\"><span class=\"section-heading-sm\">The knowledge Spacelab will bring back from its many missions will belong to all mankind.<\/span><\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"blockquote-image hds-cover-wrapper margin-right-3\"><figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/vice-president-george-h.-w.-bush-portrait.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"George H. W. Bush\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/vice-president-george-h.-w.-bush-portrait.jpg?resize=150,150 150w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/vice-president-george-h.-w.-bush-portrait.jpg?resize=50,50 50w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/vice-president-george-h.-w.-bush-portrait.jpg?resize=100,100 100w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/vice-president-george-h.-w.-bush-portrait.jpg?resize=200,200 200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-11\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"blockquote-credit-name line-height-sm margin-0\">George H. W. Bush<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"blockquote-credit-title line-height-sm padding-0 margin-0\">U.S. Vice President (1981\u20131989)<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Training for the flight required international cooperation on an entirely new scale for the American space program. Today it is not unusual to hear about an astronaut training for spaceflight at many different locations and facilities across the globe. NASA\u2019s astronauts have grown accustomed to training outside of the United States for months at a time before flying onboard the International Space Station, but that was not the experience for most of NASA\u2019s flight crews in the agency\u2019s early spaceflight programs. Mission training mainly took place in Houston at the Manned Spacecraft Center (now Johnson Space Center) and in Florida at the Cape. The Apollo-era featured only one international flight, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/apollo-soyuz-test-project\/\">Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (ASTP)<\/a>, with astronauts training in the two participating nations: the USSR and the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"985\" height=\"762\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg?w=985\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Owen Garriott and Ulf Merbold meet with George H.W. Bush inside Spacelab in 1982\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg 985w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg?resize=300,232 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg?resize=768,594 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg?resize=400,309 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg?resize=600,464 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sts_3_l-2_months_8_owen_garriott_ulf_merbold_and_george_bush_inside_spacelab_1982_pillars_feb_5_1982.jpg?resize=900,696 900w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 985px) 100vw, 985px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Pictured from the left are astronaut Owen K. Garriott, Vice President George Bush, and Ulf Merbold of West Germany, inside Spacelab in the Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy Space Center. This European-built orbital laboratory was formally dedicated on February 5, 1982. Merbold was one of the payload specialists on the first Spacelab flight STS-9, that launched November 28, 1983. Spacelab was a reusable laboratory that allowed scientists to perform various experiments in microgravity while orbiting Earth. Designed by the European Space Agency (ESA) and mounted in NASA’s Space Shuttle cargo bay, Spacelab flew on missions from 1983 to 1997.<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>It also rarely makes news these days when someone who is not a professional astronaut or cosmonaut flies in space. In the past, flying in space was a professional occupation. This all changed with the development of the Space Shuttle and Spacelab, which birthed a new space traveler: the payload specialist. The individuals selected for these positions were not career astronauts. The payload specialists were experts on a specific payload or an experiment, and during the early years of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/space-shuttle\/\">Space Shuttle program<\/a> came from a wide variety of backgrounds: the Air Force, Congress, industry, and even the field of education. The principal investigators for this science-based mission selected the payload specialists who flew in space and operated their experiments. Spacelab 1 was unique in providing the first opportunity for a non-American, a European, to fly onboard a NASA spacecraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the summer of 1978, NASA chose scientist-astronauts <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/news-release\/skylab-and-space-shuttle-astronaut-owen-garriott-dies-at-88\/\" data-type=\"press-release\" data-id=\"55714\">Owen K. Garriott<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/parker_robert.pdf?emrc=59d10a?emrc=59d10a\">Robert A. R. Parker<\/a> as mission specialists for the Spacelab 1 crew. Garriott, who had been selected as an astronaut in 1965, had flown on America\u2019s first space station as a member of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission\/skylab-3\/\">Skylab 3<\/a> crew, a team that exceeded all expectations of flight planners and principal investigators. Parker had also applied to be a scientist-astronaut and was selected in 1967. His class jokingly called themselves the \u201cXS-11\u201d [pronounced excess-eleven], because they had been told there was no room for them in the corps and they would not fly in space, not immediately anyway. Parker worked on Skylab as the program scientist, but once the program ended, he accepted a new title: chief of the Astronaut Office Science and Applications Directorate, where he spent the next few years working on Spacelab matters. It was perfect timing for the astronaut to turn his attention to this international program. Once Skylab ended in 1974, representatives of Europe\u2019s Space Research Organization (ESRO) and members of ERNO, the Spacelab contractor, started traveling to Houston and Huntsville to give the two NASA centers updates on the development of the Spacelab and to hold discussions on the module. In a 1974 press conference, ESRO\u2019s Heinz Stoewer emphasized the \u201cvery intense cooperation,\u201d he witnessed \u201cwith our friends here in the United States in making this program come true.\u201d<a href=\"#note2\"><sup data-fn=\"3b961c69-08f4-42b5-8cb4-23d1611542e1\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>2<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Around the same time, as Spacelab was being built, the European Space Agency (ESA) began considering who might fly on that first flight. Three days before Christmas in 1977, ESA released the names of their four payload specialist candidates: Wubbo Ockels, Ulf Merbold, Franco Malerba, and Claude Nicollier. Two Americans, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/lichtenberg-bk.pdf?emrc=57a167?emrc=57a167\">Byron K. Lichtenberg<\/a> and Michael L. Lampton, were selected in the summer of 1978 as potential payload specialists.<sup data-fn=\"0fa759fd-1f22-4d43-b02e-b3007747b9fb\" class=\"fn\"><a href=\"#0fa759fd-1f22-4d43-b02e-b3007747b9fb\" id=\"0fa759fd-1f22-4d43-b02e-b3007747b9fb-link\">3<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Spacelab 1 payload crew, which operated the module and the mission\u2019s experiments in the payload bay of the Orbiter, included two mission specialists, Garriott and Parker, and two payload specialists, one from the United States and another from the European Space Agency. The payload crew and their backups began training many years before the Space Shuttle Columbia launched into space on STS-9. (The original launch date of December 1980 kept slipping so the crew ended up training for five years.)<a href=\"#note4\"><sup data-fn=\"f3c6c1dd-27b0-49c4-8b0c-c36054f5a7c0\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>4<\/sup><\/a> Training in Europe began in earnest in 1978, while training in the United States and Canada began in 1979.<sup><a href=\"#note5\">5<\/a><\/sup> Merbold was eventually selected to fly on the mission along with Lichtenberg. The entire payload crew spent so much of their time travelling to Europe that John W. Young, who was then chief of the Astronaut Office, called their flight assignment and European training, which involved travel to exotic locations like Rome, Italy, \u201ca magnificent boondoggle. In my next life,\u201d he declared, \u201cI\u2019ll be an MS [mission specialist] on S Lab [Spacelab].\u201d<a href=\"#note6\"><sup data-fn=\"88812212-c975-44e7-9410-5f3d17e96237\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><\/a><sup><a href=\"#note6\">6<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-fit \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1013\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?w=1280\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"The mission specialists and payload specialists of STS-9 poses next to a model of the Space Shuttle\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=300,237 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=768,608 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=1024,810 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=400,317 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=600,475 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=900,712 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?resize=1200,950 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Spacelab-1 prime and back-up science crew members: Mission Specialists Robert Parker and Owen Garriott, with Payload Specialist-1 Ulf Merbold, backup Payload Specialist-2 Michael Lampton, backup Payload Specialist-1 Wubbo Ockels and Payload Specialist-2 Byron Lichtenberg.\u00a0<\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Lichtenberg recalled the science crew, the prime and backup payload specialists and mission specialists, traveled the globe \u201clike itinerant graduate students \u2026 to study at the laboratories of the principal investigators and their colleagues.\u201d In these laboratories, universities, and at research centers across Europe, Canada, and Japan, they learned about the equipment and experiments, including how to repair the hardware if something broke or failed in flight. Lichtenberg felt like he was earning multiple advanced degrees in the fields of astronomy and solar physics, space plasma physics, atmospheric physics, Earth observations, life sciences, and materials science. The benefits of training were numerous, but perhaps the most important were the personal and professional relationships that were built with the investigators from across the world and with his crewmates.<a href=\"#note7\"><sup data-fn=\"0fa868ff-f219-4f3d-830e-ea793b76020d\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>7<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the payload specialists, building relationships within the astronaut corps proved to be more complicated. Merbold recalled traveling to the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama and receiving a warm welcome. \u201cBut in Houston you could feel that not everyone was happy that Europe was involved. Some also resented the new concept of the payload specialist \u2018astronaut scientist,\u2019 who was not under their control like the pilots. We were perceived to be intruders in an area that was reserved for \u2018real\u2019 astronauts.\u201d As an example, the European astronauts could not use the astronaut gym or take part in T-38 flight training. Over time, attitudes changed, and Garriott credited STS-9 Mission Commander <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/former-astronaut-john-w-young\/\" data-type=\"topic\" data-id=\"272865\">John Young<\/a> with the shift, and so did Merbold. As the crew was preparing to fly, the former moonwalker took Merbold on a T-38 ride, and when the payload specialist asked if he could fly the plane, Young willingly offered him the opportunity. After that flight, Merbold recalled that he \u201cenjoyed John Young\u2019s unqualified support.”<a href=\"#note8\"><sup data-fn=\"2b0122fe-148c-4c4b-89ee-6d485ef96fed\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>8<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Friendships blossomed on the six man-crew. Parker called Pilot <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/shaw_brewster.pdf?emrc=448196?emrc=448196\">Brewster H. Shaw<\/a> and Commander Young \u201ctwo of [his] best friends to this day.\u201d<a href=\"#note9\"><sup data-fn=\"69b5d341-bae1-4473-868f-d286275e9a3e\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>9<\/sup><\/a> For Merbold, the flight cemented a significant bond between the STS-9 astronauts. He had \u201cno brothers, no sisters,\u201d he was an only child, but the Columbia crew became his family. \u201cMy brothers are those guys with whom I trained and flew,\u201d he said.<a href=\"#note10\"><sup data-fn=\"f5b634a2-7ba8-4101-943c-1b946753407f\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>10<\/sup><\/a> Young and Merbold had an especially close bond. Garriott saw that relationship up close on the Shuttle, and later told an oral historian, \u201cYoung had no better friend on board our flight than Ulf Merbold.\u201d The two remained close until Young\u2019s death.<a href=\"#note11\"><sup data-fn=\"73a14eb9-9de1-47ae-a617-73f4bbbc340a\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>11<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-media hds-module wp-block-image\"><div class=\"margin-left-auto margin-right-auto nasa-block-align-inline\"><div class=\"hds-media-wrapper margin-left-auto margin-right-auto\"><figure class=\"hds-media-inner hds-cover-wrapper hds-media-ratio-cover \"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1353\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?w=2048\" class=\"attachment-2048x2048 size-2048x2048\" alt=\"Four STS-9 crewmembers play a fun game with cards during their mission.\" style=\"transform: scale(1.2); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg 2942w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=300,198 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=768,507 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=1024,677 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=1536,1015 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=2048,1353 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=400,264 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=600,396 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=900,595 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=1200,793 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/255-sts-s09-126-445-copy.jpg?resize=2000,1322 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><figcaption class=\"hds-caption padding-y-2\"><div class=\"hds-caption-text p-sm margin-0\">Four of the STS-9 crewmembers enjoying a rare moment of collective fun inside the Spacelab module onboard the Columbia. Left to right are Byron K. Lichtenberg, Ulf Merbold, Robert A. R. Parker, and Owen K. Garriott. The “card table” here is the scientific airlock hatch, and the “cards” are the targets used in the Awareness of Position experiment.  <\/div><div class=\"hds-credits\">NASA<\/div><\/figcaption><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Following landing, Flight Crew Operations Directorate Chief George W.S. Abbey told the crew that the science community was \u201cvery pleased.\u201d<a href=\"#note12\"><sup data-fn=\"9bef64c1-5907-46cb-a282-096883016716\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>12<\/sup><\/a> The first international spaceflight since ASTP brought scientists, astronauts, and space agencies from across the globe together, laying the foundation for bringing Europe into human spaceflight operations and kicking off a different approach to training and performing science in space. As Spacelab 1 Mission Manager Henry G. Craft and Richard A. Marmann explained, the program \u201cexemplified what can be accomplished when scientists and engineers from all over the world join forces, communicating and cooperating to further advance scientific intelligence.\u201d<a href=\"#note13\"><sup data-fn=\"404735de-ad8f-4d48-a63d-e0bc0f17f26f\" class=\"fn\"><\/sup><sup>13<\/sup><\/a> Eventually, the international cooperation Craft and Marmann witnessed led to today\u2019s highly successful <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/international-space-station\/\">International Space Station Program<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:61px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Notes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li id=\"note1\">Walter Froehlich, <em><a href=\"An International Short-Stay Orbiting Laboratory\">Spacelab: An International Short-Stay Orbiting Laboratory<\/a> <\/em>(Washington, DC: NASA, 1983); <em>St. Louis Post-Dispatch<\/em>, November 28, 1983.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note2\">JSC News Release, \u201cMission Specialists for Spacelab 1 Named at JSC,\u201d 78-34, August 1, 1978; Robert A.R. Parker, <a href=\"https:\/\/historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov\/JSCHistoryPortal\/history\/oral_histories\/ParkerRAR\/ParkerRAR_10-23-02.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">interview by author, October 23, 2002, transcript<\/a>, JSC Oral History Project; \u201cEuropeans To Fly Aboard Shuttle,\u201d <em>Roundup<\/em>, March 29, 1974, 1.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note3\">\u201cFour European Candidates Chosen for First Spacelab Flight,\u201d <em>ESA Bulletin<\/em> (February 1978), no. 12: 62; \u201cTwo US scientists selected Spacelab payload specialists,\u201d <em>Roundup<\/em>, June 9, 1978, 4.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note4\">In the crew report, Parker counted his time monitoring the Spacelab, so he concluded that the mission specialists trained even longer, from 5 to 9 years.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note5\">\u201cSpacelab Scientists Tour USA,\u201d <em>Space News Roundup<\/em>, January 12, 1979, 1.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note6\">Harry G. Craft, Jr. to George W.S. Abbey, February 25, 1982, Spacelab 1 Payload Crew Experiment Training Requirements, Robert A.R. Parker Papers II, Box 28, JSC History Collection, University of Houston-Clear Lake.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note7\">Byron Lichtenberg, \u201cA New Breed of Space Traveller [sic],\u201d <em>New Scientist,<\/em> August 1984, 9.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note8\">ESA, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esa.int\/About_Us\/ESA_history\/Ulf_Merbold_STS-9_Payload_Specialist\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201cUlf Merbold: STS-9 Payload Specialist,\u201d<\/a> November 26, 2013; ESA, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.esa.int\/About_Us\/ESA_history\/Ulf_Merbold_remembering_John_Young_1930-2018\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201cUlf Merbold: remembering John Young [1930-2018],\u201d<\/a> August 22, 2018.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note9\">Parker interview.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note10\">ESA Explores, <a href=\"https:\/\/esaexplores.podbean.com\/e\/time-and-space-esas-first-astronaut-and-a-milestone-mission\/\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201cTime and Space: ESA\u2019s first astronaut,\u201d<\/a> podcast, November 25, 2020.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note11\">Owen K. Garriott, <a href=\"https:\/\/historycollection.jsc.nasa.gov\/JSCHistoryPortal\/history\/oral_histories\/GarriottOK\/GarriottOK_11-6-00.htm\" rel=\"noopener\">interview by Kevin M. Rusnak, November 6, 2000, transcript<\/a>, JSC Oral History Project; ESA, \u201cUlf Merbold: remembering John Young.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note12\">Garriott interview.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li id=\"note13\">Henry G. Craft, Jr., and Richard A. Marmann, \u201cSpacelab Program\u2019s Scientific Benefits to Mankind,\u201d <em>Acta Astronautica<\/em> 34 (1994): 304.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"nasa-gb-align-full width-full maxw-full padding-x-3 padding-y-0 hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-related-articles\">\t\t<section class=\"hds-related-articles padding-x-0 padding-y-3 desktop:padding-top-7 desktop:padding-bottom-9\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"w-100 grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0 text-align-left\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-4\"><h2 style=\"max-width: 100%;\" class=\"width-full w-full maxw-full\">Explore More<\/h2><\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/centers-and-facilities\/marshall\/marshall-managed-spacelab-paved-critical-path-to-space-station\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"206\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/1b_0_0.jpg?w=206\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/1b_0_0.jpg 686w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/1b_0_0.jpg?resize=206,300 206w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/1b_0_0.jpg?resize=274,400 274w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/1b_0_0.jpg?resize=412,600 412w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/1b_0_0.jpg?resize=617,900 617w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 206px) 100vw, 206px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">7 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">Marshall-Managed Spacelab Paved Critical Path to Space Station<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t11 years ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/centers-and-facilities\/marshall\/teresa-vanhooser-spacelab-taught-us-how-to-do-science-in-an-orbital-lab\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"201\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?w=300\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg 3000w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=300,201 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=768,514 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=1024,685 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=1536,1028 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=2048,1370 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=400,268 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=600,401 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=900,602 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=1200,803 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/9302247.jpg?resize=2000,1338 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">8 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">Teresa Vanhooser: Spacelab Taught Us How to Do Science in an Orbital Lab<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t11 years ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-4 margin-bottom-4 desktop:margin-bottom-0 desktop:padding-right-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/40-years-ago-sts-9-the-first-spacelab-science-mission\/\" class=\"color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"hds-cover-wrapper cover-hover-zoom bg-carbon-black minh-mobile\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"hds-media-background  \"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"259\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?w=300\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium\" alt=\"\" style=\"transform: scale(1); transform-origin: 50% 50%; object-position: 50% 50%; object-fit: cover;\" block_context=\"nasa-block\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg 4039w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=300,259 300w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=768,662 768w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=1024,883 1024w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=1536,1325 1536w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=2048,1766 2048w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=400,345 400w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=600,517 600w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=900,776 900w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=1200,1035 1200w, https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/sts-9-2-crew-photo-s83-35017.jpg?resize=2000,1725 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-right-0 desktop:padding-right-10\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading margin-bottom-1\">10 min read<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-1\"><h3 class=\"related-article-title\">40 Years Ago: STS-9, the First Spacelab Science Mission<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"display-flex flex-align-center label related-article-label margin-bottom-1 color-carbon-60\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"display-flex flex-align-center margin-right-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg version=\"1.1\" class=\"square-2 margin-right-1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\" y=\"0px\" width=\"16px\" height=\"16px\" viewBox=\"0 0 16 16\" style=\"enable-background:new 0 0 16 16;\" xml:space=\"preserve\"><g><g><path d=\"M8,0C3.5,0-0.1,3.7,0,8.2C0.1,12.5,3.6,16,8,16c4.4,0,8-3.6,8-8C16,3.5,12.4,0,8,0z M8,15.2 C4,15.2,0.8,12,0.8,8C0.8,4,4,0.8,8,0.8c3.9,0,7.2,3.2,7.2,7.1C15.2,11.9,12,15.2,8,15.2z\"\/><path d=\"M5.6,12c0.8-0.8,1.6-1.6,2.4-2.4c0.8,0.8,1.6,1.6,2.4,2.4c0-2.7,0-5.3,0-8C8.8,4,7.2,4,5.6,4 C5.6,6.7,5.6,9.3,5.6,12z\"\/><\/g><\/g><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span>Article<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t7 months ago\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"hds-about-the-author nasa-gb-align-full width-full maxw-full padding-x-3 padding-y-6 hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-about-the-author\"><div class=\"grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-x-0 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black padding-top-3\"><div class=\"margin-bottom-4\"><h3 class=\"heading-14\">About the Author<\/h3><\/div><\/div><div class=\"grid-row grid-container padding-x-0 maxw-widescreen\"><div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-6 desktop:padding-right-9\"><div class=\"grid-row\"><div class=\"hds-author-thumbnail mobile:circle-6 mobile:maxw-6 circle-card maxw-card thumbnail margin-right-2 desktop:margin-right-5\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"10rem\" height=\"10rem\" loading=\"lazy\" fetchpriority=\"low\" class=\"avatar avatar-300 photo medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Jennifer-Ross-Nazzal_avatar_1664377113-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"Jennifer Ross-Nazzal\"><\/div><div class=\"grid-col\"><div class=\"margin-bottom-2\"><h2 class=\"heading-29 line-height-sm\">Jennifer Ross-Nazzal<\/h2><\/div><div class=\"heading-12 p-md\">NASA Human Spaceflight Historian<\/div><div class=\"padding-y-2\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"desktop:grid-col-6 desktop:padding-right-9\"><p class=\"margin-top-0\">Jennifer Ross-Nazzal is the NASA Human Spaceflight Historian.  She is the author of Winning the West for Women:  The Life of Suffragist Emma Smith DeVoe and Making Space for Women:  Stories from Trailblazing Women of NASA's Johnson Space Center.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n<div id=\"\" class=\"nasa-gb-align-full width-full maxw-full padding-x-3 padding-y-0 article_a hds-module hds-module-full wp-block-nasa-blocks-credits-and-details\">\n<section class=\"padding-x-0 padding-top-5 padding-bottom-2 desktop:padding-top-7 desktop:padding-bottom-9\">\n\t<div class=\"grid-row grid-container maxw-widescreen padding-0\">\n\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-2 padding-right-4 margin-bottom-5 desktop:margin-bottom-0\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-top-3 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"heading-14\">Share<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<ul class=\"social-icons social-icons-round\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-x\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/intent\/tweet?via=NASA&text=Spacelab%201%3A%20A%20Model%20for%20International%20Cooperation&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasa.gov%2Fhistory%2Fspacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation%2F\" aria-label=\"Share on X.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg width=\"1200\" height=\"1227\" viewBox=\"0 0 1200 1227\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"M714.163 519.284L1160.89 0H1055.03L667.137 450.887L357.328 0H0L468.492 681.821L0 1226.37H105.866L515.491 750.218L842.672 1226.37H1200L714.137 519.284H714.163ZM569.165 687.828L521.697 619.934L144.011 79.6944H306.615L611.412 515.685L658.88 583.579L1055.08 1150.3H892.476L569.165 687.854V687.828Z\" fill=\"white\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-facebook\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasa.gov%2Fhistory%2Fspacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation%2F\" aria-label=\"Share on Facebook.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M9 8h-3v4h3v12h5v-12h3.642l.358-4h-4v-1.667c0-.955.192-1.333 1.115-1.333h2.885v-5h-3.808c-3.596 0-5.192 1.583-5.192 4.615v3.385z\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-linkedin\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nasa.gov%2Fhistory%2Fspacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation%2F\" aria-label=\"Share on LinkedIn.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M4.98 3.5c0 1.381-1.11 2.5-2.48 2.5s-2.48-1.119-2.48-2.5c0-1.38 1.11-2.5 2.48-2.5s2.48 1.12 2.48 2.5zm.02 4.5h-5v16h5v-16zm7.982 0h-4.968v16h4.969v-8.399c0-4.67 6.029-5.052 6.029 0v8.399h4.988v-10.131c0-7.88-8.922-7.593-11.018-3.714v-2.155z\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"social-icon social-icon-rss\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"\/feed\/\" aria-label=\"Subscribe to RSS feed.\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 800 800\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M493 652H392c0-134-111-244-244-244V307c189 0 345 156 345 345zm71 0c0-228-188-416-416-416V132c285 0 520 235 520 520z\"\/><circle cx=\"219\" cy=\"581\" r=\"71\"\/><\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-5 padding-right-4 margin-bottom-5 desktop:margin-bottom-0\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"padding-top-3 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"margin-bottom-2\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"heading-14\">Details<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-row margin-bottom-3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-4\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheading\">Last Updated<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"grid-col-8\">Nov 28, 2023<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"grid-col-12 desktop:grid-col-5 padding-right-4 margin-bottom-5 desktop:margin-bottom-0\"><div class=\"padding-top-3 border-top-1px border-color-carbon-black \"><div class=\"margin-bottom-2\"><h2 class=\"heading-14\">Related Terms<\/h2><\/div><ul class=\"article-tags\"><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/\">NASA History<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/shaw_brewster.pdf?emrc=448196?emrc=448196\">Brewster H. Shaw Jr.<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/lichtenberg-bk.pdf?emrc=57a167?emrc=57a167\">Byron K. Lichtenberg<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/former-astronaut-john-w-young\/\">John W. Young<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/humans-in-space\/astronauts\/former-astronauts\/owen-k-garriott\/\">Owen K. Garriott<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/parker_robert.pdf?emrc=59d10a?emrc=59d10a\">Robert A. R. Parker<\/a><\/li><li class=\"article-tag\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/mission\/sts-9\/\">STS-9<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Forty years ago, in 1983, the Space Shuttle Columbia flew its first international spaceflight, STS-9. The mission included\u2014for the first time\u2014the European Space Agency\u2019s Spacelab pressurized module and featured more than 70 experiments from American, Canadian, European, and Japanese scientists. Europeans were particularly proud of this \u201cremarkable step\u201d because \u201cNASA, the most famous space agency […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":566173,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nasa_hds_core_meta_l10n":"en-US","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_editor":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_article_contacts":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_topic":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_linked_locations":[],"nasa_hds_core_meta_article_related_articles":["97135","97136","571341"],"hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_id":"","hds_migrate_meta_pr_release_type":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_x":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_location_y":"","nasa_hds_core_meta_gallery_images":[],"footnotes":"[]"},"categories":[2671,3702,3608,3752,3542,3664,3049],"news-tags":[],"internal-terms":[12663],"coauthors":[8638],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Spacelab 1: A Model for International Cooperation","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/spacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/spacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg"},"articleSection":"NASA History","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jennifer Ross-Nazzal"}],"creator":["Jennifer Ross-Nazzal"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"NASA","logo":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/themes\/nasa\/assets\/images\/nasa-logo.svg"},"keywords":["Missions","Space Shuttle","STS-9","NASA History","Brewster H. Shaw Jr.","Byron K. Lichtenberg","John W. Young","Owen K. Garriott","Robert A. R. Parker"],"dateCreated":"2023-11-27T18:00:32Z","datePublished":"2023-11-27T18:00:32Z","dateModified":"2023-11-28T15:46:45Z"},"rendered":"<meta name=\"parsely-title\" content=\"Spacelab 1: A Model for International Cooperation\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-link\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/history\/spacelab-1-a-model-for-international-cooperation\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-type\" content=\"post\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-image-url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-pub-date\" content=\"2023-11-27T18:00:32Z\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-section\" content=\"NASA History\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-tags\" content=\"Missions,Space Shuttle,STS-9,NASA History,Brewster H. Shaw Jr.,Byron K. Lichtenberg,John W. Young,Owen K. Garriott,Robert A. R. Parker\" \/>\n<meta name=\"parsely-author\" content=\"Jennifer Ross-Nazzal\" \/>","tracker_url":"https:\/\/cdn.parsely.com\/keys\/nasa.gov\/p.js"},"read_time":9,"time_ago":"7 months","featured_image":{"id":566173,"file":"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/spacelab-1-mission-payload-specialists.jpg","title":"Spacelab 1 Mission and Payload Specialists","alt":"The crew of STS-9 poses next to a model of the Space Shuttle","caption":"Spacelab-1 prime and back-up science crew members: Mission Specialists Robert Parker and Owen Garriott, with Payload Specialist-1 Ulf Merbold, backup Payload Specialist-2 Michael Lampton, backup Payload Specialist-1 Wubbo Ockels and Payload Specialist-2 Byron Lichtenberg. 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