science

STS-89

STS-89 is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand STS-89 rather than just read about it. In short: STS-89 was a Space Shuttle mission to the Mir space station flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour, and launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida on 22 January 1998. Crew Crew notes STS-89 was originally scheduled to return Wendy B.

Key takeaways

STS-89 belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect STS-89 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of STS-89 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

STS-89 was a Space Shuttle mission to the Mir space station flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour, and launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida on 22 January 1998.

Crew

Crew notes STS-89 was originally scheduled to return Wendy B. Lawrence but returned David A. Wolf (Mir 24–25/STS-86) and left Andrew Thomas on Mir. Thomas returned on STS-91.

Crew seat assignments

Mission highlights

STS-89 launched on January 22, 1998 and was the eighth of nine planned missions to Mir and the fifth involving an exchange of U.S. astronauts. Astronaut David Wolf, who had been on Mir since late September 1997, was replaced by Astronaut Andrew Thomas. Thomas spent approximately 4 months on the orbiting Russian facility before returning to Earth when Discovery docked to Mir in late May during STS-91.

During the mission, more than 3,175 kilograms (7,000 lb) of experiments, supplies and hardware were transferred between the two spacecraft.

Experiments and payloads SPACEHAB Payloads included the Advanced X-Ray Detector (ADV XDT), Advanced Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus (ADV CGBA), EORF, Mechanics of Granular Materials (MGM) Experiment, Intra-Vehicular Radiation Environment Measurements by the Real-Time Radiation Monitor (RME-1312), Space Acceleration Measurement System (SAMS), VOA and the Volatile Removal Assembly prototype for the ISS Water Recovery System. In-cabin payloads included the Microgravity Plant Nutrient Experiment (MPNE), Shuttle Ionospheric Modification with Pulsed Local Exhaust (SIMPLEX), Closed Equilibrated Biological Aquatic System (CEBAS), TeleMedicine Instrumentation Pack (TMIP), Global Positioning System Development Test Objective (GPS DTO), Human Performance (HP) Experiment, MSD, EarthKAM, Orbiter Space Vision System (OSVS) Shuttle Condensate Collection (RME-1331), Thermo-Electric Holding Module (TEHM), Space Linear Acceleration Mass Measurement Device (DSO 914), Co-Culture Experiments (CoCult) and the Biochemistry of 3-D Tissue Engineering (BIO3D). Getaway Special experiments included the University of Michigan G-093 – Vortex Ring Transit Experiment (VORTEX), the German Aerospace Center and University Giessen G-141 – Structure of Marangoni Convection in Floating Zones Payload, the German Aerospace Center and the Technical University of Clausthal G-145 Glass Fining Experiment and the Chinese Academy of Sciences G-432 canister containing 5 crystal growth and material sciences experiments.

Coelophysis bone Additionally, the skull of a Coelophysis was brought onboard the Mir during this mission. It became the second dinosaur fossil brought into space (the first being fossilized eggshells and bones from Maiasaura in 1985, during the mission STS-51-F).

Mission insignia The insignia depicts Endeavour docked to Mir above the planet Earth. The white inside line in the shape of the number eight and the nine stars symbolize the flight's numerical designation in the Space Transportation System's mission sequence. The International Space Station is in the background.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with STS-89

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what STS-89 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to STS-89 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about STS-89 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of STS-89

In research: STS-89 appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses STS-89 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: STS-89 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Human spaceflights to Mir, Space Shuttle missions, Spacecraft launched in 1998, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for STS-89 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study STS-89 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what STS-89 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain STS-89 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is STS-89 in simple terms?

STS-89 was a Space Shuttle mission to the Mir space station flown by Space Shuttle Endeavour, and launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida on 22 January 1998. Crew Crew notes STS-89 was originally scheduled to return Wendy B.

Why does STS-89 matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study STS-89?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on STS-89.