STS-104 facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
STS-104

Quest being grappled by Canadarm2, prior to its installation on the ISS
Mission type	ISS assembly
Operator	NASA
Mission duration	12 days, 18 hours, 36 minutes, 39 seconds
Distance travelled	8,500,000 kilometres (5,300,000 mi)
Orbits completed	200
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Space Shuttle Atlantis
Launch mass	117,129 kilograms (258,225 lb)
Landing mass	94,009 kilograms (207,254 lb)
Payload mass	8,241 kilograms (18,168 lb)
Crew
Crew size	5
Members	Steven W. Lindsey Charles O. Hobaugh Michael L. Gernhardt Janet L. Kavandi James F. Reilly
EVAs	3
EVA duration	16 hours, 30 minutes
Start of mission
Launch date	12 July 2001, 09:04 (2001-07-12UTC09:04Z) UTC
Launch site	Kennedy LC-39B
End of mission
Landing date	25 July 2001, 03:38 (2001-07-25UTC03:39Z) UTC
Landing site	Kennedy SLF Runway 15
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric
Regime	Low Earth
Perigee	372 kilometres (231 mi)
Apogee	390 kilometres (240 mi)
Inclination	51.6 degrees
Period	92.2 minutes
Docking with ISS
Docking port	PMA-2 (Destiny forward)
Docking date	14 July 2001 03:08 UTC
Undocking date	22 July 2001 04:54 UTC
Time docked	8 days, 1 hour, 46 minutes
Left to right: Seated - Charles O. Hobaugh, Steven W. Lindsey; Standing - Michael L. Gernhardt, Janet L. Kavandi, James F. Reilly Space Shuttle program ← STS-100 STS-105 →

STS-104 was a Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission was flown by Space Shuttle Atlantis. Its main goal was to deliver and install a special room called the Quest Joint Airlock. This airlock is super important for astronauts to go on spacewalks.

The mission launched on July 12, 2001. After successfully connecting to the ISS and installing the new equipment, Atlantis returned to Earth safely. The astronauts also performed three spacewalks during their time in space.

Meet the Astronauts

The STS-104 mission had a crew of five brave astronauts. This was one of the last Space Shuttle missions to have only five crew members. Later missions usually had six or seven astronauts.

Mission Highlights: What Did They Do?

Launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on the STS-104 mission.

The most important part of the STS-104 mission was to bring and attach the Quest airlock to the International Space Station. Think of an airlock as a special doorway that lets astronauts move between the inside of the space station and the vacuum of space.

The Quest Airlock: A Special Doorway to Space

The Quest Joint Airlock is made of two cylinder-shaped rooms connected together. Once it was installed and ready, it became the main way for astronauts to leave and enter the ISS for spacewalks. It works with both the American spacesuits (called Extravehicular Mobility Units, or EMUs) and the Russian Orlan spacesuits.

The Quest airlock is about 6.1 meters (20 feet) long and 4 meters (13 feet) wide. It weighs about 5.9 metric tons (6.5 short tons). It's built from strong steel and aluminum. This amazing piece of equipment was made by Boeing at the Marshall Space Flight Center.

The airlock has two main parts:

• One part is for the astronauts to get ready and go outside.
• The other part is for storing all their spacewalk gear.

STS-104 also carried four large gas tanks. These tanks were attached to the outside of the airlock.

Spacewalks: Working Outside the ISS

Astronauts Michael Gernhardt and James Reilly performed three spacewalks during this mission. They spent a total of 16 hours and 30 minutes working outside the Space Shuttle Atlantis and the ISS.

• Spacewalk 1: Gernhardt and Reilly helped install the Quest airlock.
• Spacewalks 2 & 3: They focused on adding important parts to the outside of the Quest airlock. This included attaching the four large gas tanks, handrails, and other necessary equipment. The third spacewalk was actually started from inside the new Quest airlock itself!

Wake-up Calls: Music in Space

NASA has a fun tradition of playing music to wake up astronauts in space. This started way back during the Gemini program and became a regular thing with Apollo 15. The songs are often chosen by the astronauts' families. Each song usually has a special meaning for an astronaut or relates to what they'll be doing that day.

Images for kids

• 

  The payload bay of STS-104 seen by a TV camera as it approached the ISS.

See also

In Spanish: STS-104 para niños