NASA astronaut Gordon Fullerton born 1936

Astronaut C. Gordon Fullerton, born October 11, 1936 in Rochester, New York, went into space twice.

He served on support crews for Apollo 14, 15, 16 and 17.  Later he was part of two-man crews which piloted the Space Shuttle Enterprise during the Approach and Landing tests.

His first trip into space was aboard Columbia (STS-3) as pilot in March 1982.  The main objective of the mission was to continue testing the Canadarm manipulator system.

His second and final flight was aboard Challenger (STS-51-F) as commander in July-August 1985.  The primary payload was Spacelab 2.

Fullerton passed away in August 2013 from complications from a stroke he suffered in 2009.

Challenger (STS-51-F) launched 1985

Front row (seated) L–R: Gordon Fullerton, Roy Bridges, 

Back row (standing) L–R: Anthony England, Karl Henize, F. Story Musgrave, Loren Acton, John-David Bartoe

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Challenger (STS-51-F), launched July 29, 1985, was the only shuttle mission that had to "Abort To Orbit" (ATO).  Shortly after liftoff, a number of sensor failings caused the main engine to shut down and the crew had to abort to orbit.  They achieved orbit at a lower altitude and managed to complete their mission successfully.

Its crew consisted of Commander Gordon Fullerton, Pilot Roy Bridges, Karl Henize, F. Story Musgrave, Anthony England, Loren Acton and John-David Bartoe.  Challenger's primary payload was the lab module Spacelab 2, which involved multiple experiments related to life sciences and physics.

Coca-Cola and Pepsi provided carbonated drinks for the mission in specially-designed cans, but the crew preferred Tang, since it could be mixed with chilled water available on the shuttle.  The carbonated beverages weren't refrigerated and foamed excessively in microgravity.

They returned to Earth August 6.

Columbia (STS-3) launched 1982

STS-3 crew: Jack Lousma, Gordon Fullerton

Mission patch

Space Shuttle Columbia (STS-3), the third mission of NASA's shuttle program, launched March 22, 1982.  Its crew consisted of Commander Jack Lousma and Pilot Gordon Fullerton.

During the flight, the crew discovered that prolonged exposure to the sun caused the cargo bay doors to warp slightly, which prevented them from closing properly.  They found that if they rolled the orbiter to balance temperatures, the bay doors closed completely.

They returned to Earth March 30, landing at White Sands, New Mexico because of flooding at Edwards Air Force Base, the original landing site.

Enterprise makes its 5th and final test flight 1977

The Space Shuttle Enterprise made her fifth and final successful flight October 26, 1977.  She was piloted by Fred Haise (Apollo 13) and Gordon Fullerton (STS-3, STS-51-F).  She also landed on the concrete runway at Edwards AFB instead of a dry lakebed runway.

Her successful missions paved the way for future space shuttle missions.