EURECA mission
EURECA’s first mission used an ESA free-flying spacecraft to carry out microgravity, solar, astrophysics, and technology investigations for about eleven months. Atlantis launched the spacecraft on STS-46 in July 1992 and deployed it on August 2. Scientific operations began on August 7. Experiments included the WATCH hard-X-ray instrument, which monitored celestial sources and gamma-ray bursts. The spacecraft was recovered by STS-57 in June 1993 and returned to Earth on July 1, allowing payload and spacecraft inspections as well as analysis of recorded measurements.
Follow this mission
Alerts are unavailable because this mission is no longer active.
Identity
- Aliases
- European Retrievable Carrier missionEURECA-1
- Name
- EURECA mission
- Status
- completed
Details
- Astronauts
- -
- Description
- EURECA’s first mission used an ESA free-flying spacecraft to carry out microgravity, solar, astrophysics, and technology investigations for about eleven months. Atlantis launched the spacecraft on STS-46 in July 1992 and deployed it on August 2. Scientific operations began on August 7. Experiments included the WATCH hard-X-ray instrument, which monitored celestial sources and gamma-ray bursts. The spacecraft was recovered by STS-57 in June 1993 and returned to Earth on July 1, allowing payload and spacecraft inspections as well as analysis of recorded measurements.
- Destination
- Low Earth orbit; recovery and return to Earth
- End Date
- 1993-07-01
- Outcome
- Completed the research flight and returned its experiments to Earth. WATCH detected 19 cosmic gamma-ray bursts and localized 12 to approximately one degree. Recovery required a spacewalk to fold the spacecraft’s antennas after ground-commanded stowage failed.
- Programs
- -
- Start Date
- 1992-07-31
- Vehicle Families
Links
Assets & Meta
- Creation Time
- October 29, 2026 at 15:57:57 UTC
- Updated Time
- October 29, 2026 at 15:57:57 UTC
Other
- Affiliations
- Space Stations
- -
- Vehicles