Inertial Upper Stage
Flights
Table:
S/N[10]

Launch Date

Launch Vehicle

Payload

Remarks

Image

2

1982-10-30

Titan 34D

DSCS II F-16/III A-1

Mission successful despite telemetry loss for most of the flight.

1

1983-04-04

Space Shuttle
Challenger (STS-6)

TDRS-A (TDRS-1)

The second stage tumbled due to a thruster motor problem, resulting in an incorrect orbit. The Boeing staff that was monitoring the flight was able to separate the tumbling IUS from the satellite so it could be maneuvered into its final orbit.

11

1985-01-24

Space Shuttle
Discovery (STS-51-C)

USA-8 (Magnum)

Classified DoD payload[citation needed]

12

1985-10-03

Space Shuttle
Atlantis (STS-51-J)

USA-11/12 (DSCS)

Classified DoD payload

3

1986-01-28

Space Shuttle
Challenger (STS-51-L)

TDRS-B

Destroyed during launch[11]

7

1988-09-29

Space Shuttle
Discovery (STS-26)

TDRS-C (TDRS-3)

9

1989-03-13

Space Shuttle
Discovery (STS-29)

TDRS-D (TDRS-4)

18

1989-05-04

Space Shuttle
Atlantis (STS-30)

Magellan

Probe to Venus

8

1989-06-14

Titan IV (402) A

USA-39 (DSP)

19

1989-10-18

Space Shuttle
Atlantis (STS-34)

Galileo

Probe to Jupiter

5

1989-11-23

Space Shuttle
Discovery (STS-33)

USA-48 (Magnum)

Classified DoD payload

17

1990-10-06

Space Shuttle
Discovery (STS-41)

Ulysses

Probe to the polar regions of the Sun

6

1990-11-13

Titan IV (402) A

USA-65 (DSP)

15

1991-08-02

Space Shuttle
Atlantis (STS-43)

TDRS-E (TDRS-5)

14

1991-11-24

Space Shuttle
Atlantis (STS-44)

USA-75 (DSP)

13

1993-01-13

Space Shuttle
Endeavour (STS-54)

TDRS-F (TDRS-6)

20

1994-12-22

Titan IV (402) A

USA-107 (DSP)

26

1995-07-13

Space Shuttle
Discovery (STS-70)

TDRS-G (TDRS-7)

4

1997-02-23

Titan IV (402) B

USA-130 (DSP)

21

1999-04-09

Titan IV (402) B

USA-142 (DSP)

IUS first and second stages failed to separate, payload placed into useless orbit

Looking at the tabular data plus the supporting text provided.

Provide an answer to this question: What was the launch date of the payload that arrived at Jupiter on December 7 , 1995 ? Output only the correct answer as {"answer": "YOUR ANSWER"}.

The Titan 34D was a United States expendable launch vehicle used to launch a number of satellites for military applications .
The Space Shuttle is a partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system that was operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ) as part of the Space Shuttle program . Its official program name was Space Transportation System ( STS ) , taken from a 1969 plan for a system of reusable spacecraft of which it was the only item funded for development . The first of four orbital test flights occurred in 1981 , leading to operational flights beginning in 1982 . In addition to the prototype whose completion was cancelled , five complete Shuttle systems were built and used on a total of 135 missions from 1981 to 2011 , launched from the Kennedy Space Center ( KSC ) in Florida . Operational missions launched numerous satellites , interplanetary probes , and the Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ) ; conducted science experiments in orbit ; and participated in construction and servicing of the International Space Station . The Shuttle fleet 's total mission time was 1322 days , 19 hours , 21 minutes and 23 seconds . Shuttle components include the Orbiter Vehicle ( OV ) with three clustered Rocketdyne RS-25 main engines , a pair of recoverable solid rocket boosters ( SRBs ) , and the expendable external tank ( ET ) containing liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen . The Space Shuttle was launched vertically , like a conventional rocket , with the two SRBs operating in parallel with the OV 's three main engines , which were fueled from the ET . The SRBs were jettisoned before the vehicle reached orbit , and the ET was jettisoned just before orbit insertion , which used the orbiter 's two Orbital Maneuvering System ( OMS ) engines . At the conclusion of the mission , the orbiter fired its OMS to deorbit and reenter the atmosphere . The orbiter then glided as a spaceplane to a runway landing , usually to the Shuttle Landing Facility at Kennedy Space Center , Florida or Rogers Dry Lake in Edwards Air Force Base , California . After landing at Edwards , the orbiter was flown back to the KSC on the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft , a specially modified Boeing 747 .
Space Shuttle Challenger ( Orbiter Vehicle Designation : OV-099 ) was the second orbiter of NASA 's Space Shuttle program to be put into service , after Columbia . Challenger was built by Rockwell International 's Space Transportation Systems Division , in Downey , California . Its maiden flight , STS-6 , began on April 4 , 1983 . The orbiter was launched and landed nine times before breaking apart 73 seconds into its tenth mission , STS-51-L , on January 28 , 1986 , resulting in the deaths of all seven crew members including a civilian school teacher . Challenger was the first of two orbiters that were destroyed in flight , the other being Columbia in 2003 . The accident led to a two-and-a-half-year grounding of the shuttle fleet ; flights resumed in 1988 , with STS-26 flown by Discovery . Challenger was replaced by Endeavour , which was built from structural spares ordered by NASA in the construction contracts for Discovery and Atlantis .
STS-6 was the sixth NASA Space Shuttle mission and the maiden flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger . Launched from Kennedy Space Center on 4 April 1983 , the mission deployed the first Tracking and Data Relay Satellite , TDRS-1 , into orbit , before landing at Edwards Air Force Base on 9 April . STS-6 was the first Space Shuttle mission during which a spacewalk was conducted , and hence was the first in which the Extravehicular Mobility Unit ( EMU ) was used .
TDRS-1 , known before launch as TDRS-A , was an American communications satellite which was operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System . It was constructed by TRW and launched by Space Shuttle Challenger on its maiden flight , STS-6 .
Space Shuttle Discovery ( Orbiter Vehicle Designation : OV-103 ) is one of the orbiters from NASA 's Space Shuttle program and the third of five fully operational orbiters to be built . Its first mission , STS-41-D , flew from August 30 to September 5 , 1984 . Over 27 years of service it launched and landed 39 times , gathering more spaceflights than any other spacecraft to date . Like other shuttles , the shuttle has three main components : the Space Shuttle orbiter , a central fuel tank , and two rocket boosters . Nearly 25,000 heat resistant tiles cover the orbiter to protect it from high temperatures on re-entry . Discovery became the third operational orbiter to enter service , preceded by Columbia and Challenger . It embarked on its last mission , STS-133 , on February 24 , 2011 and touched down for the final time at Kennedy Space Center on March 9 , having spent a cumulative total of almost a full year in space . Discovery performed both research and International Space Station ( ISS ) assembly missions , and also carried the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit . Discovery was the first operational shuttle to be retired , followed by Endeavour and then Atlantis . The shuttle is now on display at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia .
STS-51-C was the 15th flight of NASA 's Space Shuttle program , and the third flight of Space Shuttle Discovery . It launched on January 24 , 1985 , and made the fourth shuttle landing at Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on January 27 . STS-51-C was the first shuttle mission to deploy a dedicated United States Department of Defense ( DoD ) payload , and consequently many mission details remain classified .
STS-51-C was the 15th flight of NASA 's Space Shuttle program , and the third flight of Space Shuttle Discovery . It launched on January 24 , 1985 , and made the fourth shuttle landing at Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on January 27 . STS-51-C was the first shuttle mission to deploy a dedicated United States Department of Defense ( DoD ) payload , and consequently many mission details remain classified .
Magnum was a class of SIGINT spy satellites reportedly operated by the National Reconnaissance Office for the United States Central Intelligence Agency . The program remains classified , and the information that exists is speculative . It is believed that two Magnum satellites were launched from Space Shuttle Discovery during the missions STS-51-C in 1985 and STS-33 in 1989 . The satellites reportedly have a mass of 2,200-2,700 kg ( 4,900-6,000 lb ) , operating in near-geosynchronous orbits , using Inertial Upper Stages to get from the shuttle 's orbit to the higher geosynchronous orbit . According to Jim Slade of ABC News , the second satellite , USA-48 , replaced the first , USA-8 , which after more than 4 years in orbit was running out of maneuvering fuel required for keeping its station over the Indian Ocean . The mission of the two satellites was to listen in to military and diplomatic communications from the Soviet Union , China , and neighbouring countries . USA-67 , launched aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis in November 1990 ( the STS-38 mission ) , was initially identified as a third Magnum satellite owing to the presence of two upper stages in orbit after its deployment , suggesting that an IUS had been used to deploy it . It was later determined that the second upper stage was from the stealthy Prowler spacecraft , and that USA-67 was an SDS-2 communications satellite . The Magnum satellites , built by TRW , are rumored to have large ( estimated 100 m ( 330 ft ) diameter ) umbrella-like reflecting dishes to collect RF signals from Earth . The Magnum/Orion satellites replaced the older Rhyolite/Aquacade series of SIGINT satellites , and have themselves been succeeded by the Mentor/Advanced Orion satellites .
Space Shuttle Atlantis ( Orbiter Vehicle Designation : OV - 104 ) is a Space Shuttle orbiter vehicle belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ) , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States . Constructed by the Rockwell International company in Southern California and delivered to the Kennedy Space Center in Eastern Florida in April 1985 , Atlantis is the fourth operational and the second-to-last Space Shuttle built . Its maiden flight was STS-51-J from 3 to 7 October 1985 . Atlantis embarked on its 33rd and final mission , also the final mission of a space shuttle , STS-135 , on 8 July 2011 . STS-134 by Endeavour was expected to be the final flight before STS-135 was authorized in October 2010 . STS-135 took advantage of the processing for the STS-335 Launch on Need mission that would have been necessary if STS-134 's crew became stranded in orbit . Atlantis landed for the final time at the Kennedy Space Center on 21 July 2011 . By the end of its final mission , Atlantis had orbited the Earth a total of 4,848 times , traveling nearly 126,000,000 mi ( 203,000,000 km ) or more than 525 times the distance from the Earth to the Moon . Atlantis is named after RV Atlantis , a two-masted sailing ship that operated as the primary research vessel for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution from 1930 to 1966 .
STS-51-J was the 21st NASA Space Shuttle mission and the first flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis . It launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 3 October 1985 , carrying a payload for the U.S. Department of Defense , and landed at Edwards Air Force Base , California , on 7 October .
STS-51-J was the 21st NASA Space Shuttle mission and the first flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis . It launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 3 October 1985 , carrying a payload for the U.S. Department of Defense , and landed at Edwards Air Force Base , California , on 7 October .
STS-51-J was the 21st NASA Space Shuttle mission and the first flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis . It launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 3 October 1985 , carrying a payload for the U.S. Department of Defense , and landed at Edwards Air Force Base , California , on 7 October .
The Defense Satellite Communications System ( DSCS ) provides the United States with military communications to support globally distributed military users . Beginning in 2007 , DSCS is being replaced by the Wideband Global SATCOM system . A total of 14 DSCS-III satellites were launched between the early 1980s and 2003 . Two satellites were launched aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis in 1985 during the STS-51-J flight . As of 23 November 2015 , seven DSCS-III satellites were still operational . DSCS operations are currently run by the 4th Space Operations Squadron out of Schriever Air Force Base .
STS-51-L was the disastrous 25th mission of the United States Space Shuttle program , the program to carry out routine transportation for Earth-to-orbit crew and cargo ; as well as the final flight of Space Shuttle Challenger . Planned as the first Teacher in Space Project in addition to observing Halley 's Comet for six days , the mission never achieved orbit ; a structural failure during its ascent phase 73 seconds after launch from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39 on January 28 , 1986 , killed all seven crew members - Commander Dick Scobee , Pilot Michael J. Smith , Mission Specialists Ellison S. Onizuka , Judith A. Resnik and Ronald E. McNair , and Payload Specialists Gregory Jarvis and Christa McAuliffe - and destroyed the orbiter . Immediately after the disaster , NASA convened the Rogers Commission to determine the cause of the explosion . The failure of an O-ring seal on the starboard Solid Rocket Booster ( SRB ) was determined to have caused the shuttle to break-up in flight . Space Shuttle flights were suspended for 32 months while the hazards with the shuttle were addressed . The Space Shuttle program resumed with STS-26 , launched two years after the accident .
TDRS-B was an American communications satellite , which was to have formed part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System . It was destroyed when the Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated 73 seconds after launch .
The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster was a fatal incident in the United States space program that occurred on Tuesday , January 28 , 1986 , when the Space Shuttle Challenger ( OV-099 ) broke apart 73 seconds into its flight , killing all seven crew members aboard . The crew consisted of five NASA astronauts , one payload specialist , and a civilian schoolteacher . The mission carried the designation STS-51-L and was the tenth flight for the Challenger orbiter . The spacecraft disintegrated over the Atlantic Ocean , off the coast of Cape Canaveral , Florida , at 11:39 a.m. EST ( 16:39 UTC ) . The disintegration of the vehicle began after a joint in its right solid rocket booster ( SRB ) failed at liftoff . The failure was caused by the failure of O-ring seals used in the joint that were not designed to handle the unusually cold conditions that existed at this launch . The seals ' failure caused a breach in the SRB joint , allowing pressurized burning gas from within the solid rocket motor to reach the outside and impinge upon the adjacent SRB aft field joint attachment hardware and external fuel tank . This led to the separation of the right-hand SRB 's aft field joint attachment and the structural failure of the external tank . Aerodynamic forces broke up the orbiter . The crew compartment and many other vehicle fragments were eventually recovered from the ocean floor after a lengthy search and recovery operation . The exact timing of the death of the crew is unknown ; several crew members are known to have survived the initial breakup of the spacecraft . The shuttle had no escape system , [ a ] and the impact of the crew compartment at terminal velocity with the ocean surface was too violent to be survivable .
STS-26 was the 26th NASA Space Shuttle mission and the seventh flight of the orbiter Discovery . The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 29 September 1988 , and landed four days later on 3 October . STS-26 was declared the Return to Flight mission , being the first mission after the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster of 28 January 1986 . It was the first mission since STS-9 to use the original STS numbering system , the first to have all its crew members wear pressure suits for launch and landing since STS-4 , and the first mission with bailout capacity since STS-4 . STS-26 was also the first all-veteran crew mission since Apollo 11 , with all of its crew members having flown at least one prior mission .
TDRS-3 , known before launch as TDRS-C , is an American communications satellite which is operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System . It was constructed by TRW , and is based on a custom satellite bus which was used for all seven first generation TDRS satellites .
STS-29 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission , during which Space Shuttle Discovery inserted a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite ( TDRS ) into Earth orbit . It was the third shuttle mission following the Challenger disaster of 1986 , and launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 13 March 1989 . STS-29 was the eighth flight of Discovery and the 28th Space Shuttle mission overall ; its planned predecessor , STS-28 , was delayed until August 1989 .
TDRS-4 , known before launch as TDRS-D , is an American communications satellite which was operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System from 1989 until 2011 . It was constructed by TRW , based on a custom satellite bus which was used for all seven of the first generation TDRS satellites .
STS-30 was the 29th NASA Space Shuttle mission and the fourth mission for Space Shuttle Atlantis . It was the fourth shuttle launch since the Challenger Disaster and the first shuttle mission since the disaster to have a female astronaut on board . The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 4 May 1989 , and landed four days later on 8 May . During the mission , Atlantis deployed the Venus-bound Magellan probe into orbit .
The Magellan spacecraft , also referred to as the Venus Radar Mapper , was a 1,035-kilogram ( 2,282 lb ) robotic space probe launched by NASA of the United States , on May 4 , 1989 , to map the surface of Venus by using synthetic aperture radar and to measure the planetary gravitational field . The Magellan probe was the first interplanetary mission to be launched from the Space Shuttle , the first one to use the Inertial Upper Stage booster for launching , and the first spacecraft to test aerobraking as a method for circularizing its orbit . Magellan was the fifth successful NASA mission to Venus , and it ended an eleven-year gap in U.S. interplanetary probe launches .
Venus is the second planet from the Sun . It is named after the Roman goddess of love and beauty . As the second-brightest natural object in the night sky after the Moon , Venus can cast shadows and , rarely , is visible to the naked eye in broad daylight . Venus lies within Earth 's orbit , and so never appears to venture far from the Sun , either setting in the west just after dusk or rising in the east a bit before dawn . Venus orbits the Sun every 224.7 Earth days . With a rotation period of 243 Earth days , it takes longer to rotate about its axis than any planet in the Solar System and does so in the opposite direction to all but Uranus ( meaning the Sun rises in the west and sets in the east ) . Venus does not have any moons , a distinction it shares only with Mercury among planets in the Solar System . Venus is a terrestrial planet and is sometimes called Earth 's sister planet because of their similar size , mass , proximity to the Sun , and bulk composition . It is radically different from Earth in other respects . It has the densest atmosphere of the four terrestrial planets , consisting of more than 96% carbon dioxide . The atmospheric pressure at the planet 's surface is 92 times that of Earth , or roughly the pressure found 900 m ( 3,000 ft ) underwater on Earth . Venus is by far the hottest planet in the Solar System , with a mean surface temperature of 735 K ( 462 °C ; 863 °F ) , even though Mercury is closer to the Sun .
The Titan IV was a family of rockets ( including the IVA and IVB ) that launched satellite payloads for the U.S. Air Force ( USAF ) . Launches were conducted from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station , Florida and Vandenberg Air Force Base , California . The Titan IV was the last of the Titan family of rockets . It was retired in 2005 due to its high cost of operation . The final launch ( B-30 ) from Cape Canaveral AFS occurred on 29 April 2005 , and the final launch from Vandenberg AFB occurred on 19 October 2005 . Lockheed Martin Space Systems built the Titan IVs near Denver , Colorado , under contract to the US government . Two Titan IV vehicles are currently on display .
The Defense Support Program ( DSP ) is a program of the U.S. Air Force that operates the reconnaissance satellites which form the principal component of the Satellite Early Warning System currently used by the United States . DSP satellites , which are operated by the Air Force Space Command , detect missile or spacecraft launches and nuclear explosions using sensors that detect the infrared emissions from these intense sources of heat . During Desert Storm , for example , DSP was able to detect the launches of Iraqi Scud missiles and provide timely warnings to civilians and military forces in Israel and Saudi Arabia . The satellites are in geosynchronous orbits , and are equipped with infrared sensors operating through a wide-angle Schmidt camera . The entire satellite spins so that the linear sensor array in the focal plane scans over the earth six times every minute . Typically , DSP satellites were launched on Titan IVB boosters with Inertial Upper Stages . However , at least one DSP satellite ( DSP-16 ) was launched using the Space Shuttle , the known example being Atlantis on mission STS-44 ( 24 November 1991 ) . [ citation needed ] The last known DSP satellite ( flight 23 ) was launched in 2007 aboard the first operational flight of the Delta IV Heavy rocket , as the Titan IV had been retired in 2005 . All 23 satellites were built by the prime contractor Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems , formerly TRW , in Redondo Beach , California . The 460th Space Wing , with headquarters at Buckley Air Force Base , Colorado , has units , primarily the 2d Space Warning Squadron , that operate DSP satellites and report warning information , via communications links , to the NORAD and USSTRATCOM early warning centers within the Cheyenne Mountain Complex , Colorado . These centers immediately forward data to various agencies and areas of operations around the world . [ citation needed ] Air Force Space Command 's SBIRS Wing at the Space and Missile Systems Center , Los Angeles AFB , California is responsible for development and acquisition of the satellites .
STS-34 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission using Atlantis . It was the 31st shuttle mission overall , and the fifth flight for Atlantis . STS-34 launched from Kennedy Space Center , Florida , on 18 October 1989 , and landed at Edwards Air Force Base , California , on 23 October . During the mission , the Jupiter-bound Galileo probe was deployed into space .
Galileo was an American uncrewed spacecraft that studied the planet Jupiter and its moons , as well as several other Solar System bodies . Named after the Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei , it consisted of an orbiter and an entry probe . It was delivered into Earth orbit on October 18 , 1989 by Space Shuttle Atlantis . Galileo arrived at Jupiter on December 7 , 1995 , after gravitational assist flybys of Venus and Earth , and became the first spacecraft to orbit Jupiter . It launched the first probe into Jupiter , directly measuring its atmosphere . Despite suffering major antenna problems , Galileo achieved the first asteroid flyby , of 951 Gaspra , and discovered the first asteroid moon , Dactyl , around 243 Ida . In 1994 , Galileo observed Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 's collision with Jupiter . Jupiter 's atmospheric composition and ammonia clouds were recorded , the clouds possibly created by outflows from the lower depths of the atmosphere . Io 's volcanism and plasma interactions with Jupiter 's atmosphere were also recorded . The data Galileo collected supported the theory of a liquid ocean under the icy surface of Europa , and there were indications of similar liquid-saltwater layers under the surfaces of Ganymede and Callisto . Ganymede was shown to possess a magnetic field and the spacecraft found new evidence for exospheres around Europa , Ganymede , and Callisto . Galileo also discovered that Jupiter 's faint ring system consists of dust from impacts on the four small inner moons .
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System . It is a gas giant with a mass one-thousandth that of the Sun , but two-and-a-half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined . Jupiter is one of the brightest objects visible to the naked eye in the night sky , and has been known to ancient civilizations since before recorded history . It is named after the Roman god Jupiter . When viewed from Earth , Jupiter can be bright enough for its reflected light to cast shadows , and is on average the third-brightest natural object in the night sky after the Moon and Venus . Jupiter is primarily composed of hydrogen with a quarter of its mass being helium , though helium comprises only about a tenth of the number of molecules . It may also have a rocky core of heavier elements , but like the other giant planets , Jupiter lacks a well-defined solid surface . Because of its rapid rotation , the planet 's shape is that of an oblate spheroid ( it has a slight but noticeable bulge around the equator ) . The outer atmosphere is visibly segregated into several bands at different latitudes , resulting in turbulence and storms along their interacting boundaries . A prominent result is the Great Red Spot , a giant storm that is known to have existed since at least the 17th century when it was first seen by telescope . Surrounding Jupiter is a faint planetary ring system and a powerful magnetosphere . Jupiter has 79 known moons , including the four large Galilean moons discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610 .
STS-33 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission , during which Space Shuttle Discovery deployed a payload for the United States Department of Defense ( DoD ) . STS-33 was the 32nd shuttle mission overall , the ninth flight of Discovery , the fifth shuttle mission in support of the DoD and last Shuttle launch of the 1980s . Due to the nature of the mission , specific details remain classified . Discovery lifted off from Pad B , Launch Complex 39 at Kennedy Space Center ( KSC ) , Florida , on 22 November 1989 at 7:23 pm EST ; it landed at Edwards Air Force Base , California , on 28 November .
STS-41 was the eleventh mission of the Space Shuttle Discovery . The four-day mission with a primary objective to launch the Ulysses probe as part of the International Solar Polar Mission .
Ulysses ( US : /juːˈlɪsiːz/ , UK : /ˈjuːlɪ-/ ) is a decommissioned robotic space probe whose primary mission was to orbit the Sun and study it at all latitudes . It was launched in 1990 and made three fast latitude scans of the Sun in 1994/1995 , 2000/2001 , and 2007/2008 . In addition , the probe studied several comets . Ulysses was a joint venture of NASA and the European Space Agency ( ESA ) with participation from Canada 's National Research Council . The last day for mission operations on Ulysses was June 30 , 2009 . To study the Sun at all latitudes , the probe needed to change its orbital inclination and leave the plane of the Solar System . To change the orbital inclination of a spacecraft to about 80° requires a large change in heliocentric velocity , the energy to achieve which far exceeded the capabilities of any launch vehicle . To reach the desired orbit around the Sun , the mission 's planners chose a gravity assist maneuver around Jupiter , but this Jupiter encounter meant that Ulysses could not be powered by solar cells . The probe was powered instead by a radioisotope thermoelectric generator ( RTG ) . The spacecraft was originally named Odysseus , because of its lengthy and indirect trajectory to study the solar poles . It was renamed Ulysses , the Latin translation of Odysseus , at ESA 's request in honor not only of Homer 's mythological hero but also of Dante 's character in the Inferno . Ulysses was originally scheduled for launch in May 1986 aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger on STS-61-F. Due to the loss of Challenger , the launch of Ulysses was delayed until October 6 , 1990 aboard Discovery ( mission STS-41 ) .
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System . It is a nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma , with internal convective motion that generates a magnetic field via a dynamo process . It is by far the most important source of energy for life on Earth . Its diameter is about 1.39 million kilometers ( 864,000 miles ) , or 109 times that of Earth , and its mass is about 330,000 times that of Earth . It accounts for about 99.86% of the total mass of the Solar System . Roughly three quarters of the Sun 's mass consists of hydrogen ( ~73% ) ; the rest is mostly helium ( ~25% ) , with much smaller quantities of heavier elements , including oxygen , carbon , neon , and iron . The Sun is a G-type main-sequence star ( G2V ) based on its spectral class . As such , it is informally and not completely accurately referred to as a yellow dwarf ( its light is closer to white than yellow ) . It formed approximately 4.6 billion [ a ] years ago from the gravitational collapse of matter within a region of a large molecular cloud . Most of this matter gathered in the center , whereas the rest flattened into an orbiting disk that became the Solar System . The central mass became so hot and dense that it eventually initiated nuclear fusion in its core . It is thought that almost all stars form by this process .
STS-43 , the ninth mission for Space Shuttle Atlantis , was a nine-day mission whose primary goal was launching the fourth Tracking and Data Relay Satellite , TDRS-E . The flight also tested an advanced heatpipe radiator for potential use on the then-future space station and conducted a variety of medical and materials science investigations .
TDRS-5 , known before launch as TDRS-E , is an American communications satellite which is operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System . It was constructed by TRW is based on a custom satellite bus which was used for all seven first generation TDRS satellites .
STS-44 was a Space Shuttle mission using Atlantis that launched on 24 November 1991 . It was a U.S. Department of Defense space mission .
Space Shuttle Endeavour ( Orbiter Vehicle Designation : OV-105 ) is a retired orbiter from NASA 's Space Shuttle program and the fifth and final operational Shuttle built . It embarked on its first mission , STS-49 , in May 1992 and its 25th and final mission , STS-134 , in May 2011 . STS-134 was expected to be the final mission of the Space Shuttle program , but with the authorization of STS-135 , Atlantis became the last shuttle to fly . The United States Congress approved the construction of Endeavour in 1987 to replace Challenger , which was destroyed in 1986 . Structural spares built during the construction of Discovery and Atlantis were used in its assembly . NASA chose , on cost grounds , to build Endeavour from spares rather than refitting Enterprise .
STS-54 was a Space Transportation System ( NASA Space Shuttle ) mission using Space Shuttle Endeavour . This was the third flight for Endeavour , and was launched on 13 January 1993 .
TDRS-6 , known before launch as TDRS-F , is an American communications satellite which is operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System . It was constructed by TRW , and is based on a custom satellite bus which was used for all seven first generation TDRS satellites .
STS-70 was the 21st flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery , and the last of 7 shuttle missions to carry a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite ( TDRS ) . This was the first shuttle mission controlled from the new mission control center room at the Johnson Space Center in Houston . STS-70 was also the first flight of the new Block 1 orbiter main engine , designed to improve both engine performance and safety . The mission was launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 13 July 1995 , only six days after the landing of sister ship Atlantis , marking the fastest turnaround between flights in the history of the program .
TDRS-7 , known before launch as TDRS-G , is an American communications satellite which is operated by NASA as part of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System . It was constructed by TRW as a replacement for TDRS-B , which had been lost in the Challenger accident , and was the last first-generation TDRS satellite to be launched .
USA-130 is an American reconnaissance satellite that was launched in 1997 . It was a DSP-I block 5 missile detection satellite run by the Defense Support Program . It is currently out of service .