Launch of Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-51) Poster

STS-51 was the 14th flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery and the 57th flight of the Space Shuttle system. The launch of this mission was postponed multiple times due to problems with the solid rocket boosters, main engine fuel sensors and delay pending the outcome of the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS) Independent Review Team. This team met to review the design of the ACTS spacecraft in light of the loss of of contact with the Mars Observer spacecraft and the failure of the NOAA-13 weather satellite. STS-51 finally lifted off on September 12, 1993, from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida carrying a crew of five. The crewmembers were Commander Frank L. Culbertson, Pilot William F. Readdy, and Mission Specialists James H. Newman, Daniel W. Bursch, and Carl E. Walz.