STS-1 NASA footage

[Mark Dave]

I stumbled on these videos this person posted of the first shuttle flight



I wonder if this is on dvd at all? I noticed here the LO2 vent cap and arm retract  at T-9 minutes, far earlier than what is seen today.

[Jester]

thats higher quality then i've seen in a while, plus part 9 has engineering shots....
did I miss a spacecraftfilm release ??

[Mark Dave]

Who knows, maybe we'll see another dvd someday.

[zerm]

zellco321 has a ton of good stuff if you are willing to sift through. His MR-4 section is really terrific to watch. I downloaded all of them and stitched them into one DVD- I play it while I work sometimes.

In this STS-1 clip, it's interesting to watch the GOX hood retract so early in the count. In their post-flight de-bried Young and Crip. said that they had not been briefed on that retraction. Young stated that they just looked up and there it went.

[Mark Dave]

I do wonder why the LOX arm moved away that early in the count. Why?

[Blackstar]

Is there good film footage of these early missions?

One of my concerns is that once videotape became cheap and ubiquitous, there was a tendency to switch to that instead of film.  Video degrades much faster than film, and as a result we don't have good imagery of these missions compared to Apollo, where pretty much everything was recorded on film.

[Mark Dave]

Spacecraft Films is the only one I know of that is taking care of that Blackstar. All videos transferred to dvds to preserve them.

[JayP]

I do wonder why the LOX arm moved away that early in the count. Why?

The vent hood bellows had completely failed in the previous tests and were removed for the STS-1 launch (they redesigned them before STS-2) I believe the early pullback was to allow them to evaluate weather or not ice was forming on the tank in plenty of time to make a launch decision.

[Blackstar]

Spacecraft Films is the only one I know of that is taking care of that Blackstar. All videos transferred to dvds to preserve them.

But is there good film (not video) footage from these early launches?

I assume that there must be, because NASA was still using film cameras for tracking--and continued to do so up through around 2005 or so.  But I suspect that if that material was preserved, it is difficult to get to.

[ugordan]

All videos transferred to dvds to preserve them.

Not that DVD is terribly good quality itself. I have some Spacecraft Films Saturn V DVDs and they're "enhanced" with compression artifacts, sometimes pretty noticeable.

[zerm]

Spacecraft Films is the only one I know of that is taking care of that Blackstar. All videos transferred to dvds to preserve them.

But is there good film (not video) footage from these early launches?

I assume that there must be, because NASA was still using film cameras for tracking--and continued to do so up through around 2005 or so.  But I suspect that if that material was preserved, it is difficult to get to.

My guess is probably the same as yours Blackstar- they're here in (or near) DC at the National Archives. And I'm sure you know what dealing with them in order to get material is like. It's enough to make Indiana Jones give up and go back to digging in the sand someplace.

[catdlr]

bump....

Space Shuttle: A Remarkable Flying Machine - 1981 NASA Educational Documentary - WDTVLIVE42

wdtvlive42 - Archive Footage

Published on Mar 31, 2017
This film documents the first historic flight of a space shuttle, the U.S. spacecraft Columbia, which launched on April 12, 1981 (flight STS-1). The footage highlights liftoff, the onboard activities of astronauts John Young and Robert Crippen, as well as the landing in Rogers Dry Lake bed in California.

STS-1 was the first orbital flight of NASA's Space Shuttle program. The mission launched on 12 April 1981, and returned to Earth on 14 April. Space Shuttle Columbia orbited the Earth 37 times during the 54.5-hour mission. It was the first American manned space flight since the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project on 15 July 1975. STS-1 was the only US manned maiden test flight of a new spacecraft system, although it was the culmination of atmospheric testing of the Space Shuttle orbiter.

[catdlr]

[catdlr]

[catdlr]

Space Shuttle Columbia Returns to the Kennedy Space Center After STS-1 Mission - April 28, 1981

[catdlr]

STS-1 Columbia Tile Bonding Process | 1979 Orbiter Processing Facility Footage

Oct 13, 2024
Step back in time to 1979 and witness the intricate tile bonding process that was critical to the safety of NASA’s first Space Shuttle mission, STS-1. This rare video footage, recorded in the Orbiter Processing Facility, shows the meticulous process of bonding the thermal protection tiles to the orbiter Columbia as NASA prepared for its maiden flight.

These tiles were essential for protecting the shuttle from the extreme heat of re-entry, and the process of applying each one required precision and expertise. Watch as technicians carefully handle and bond thousands of tiles, ensuring that Columbia was ready to withstand the rigors of space travel. This behind-the-scenes look offers a fascinating glimpse into the technological innovation and attention to detail that made STS-1 possible.

Video courtesy NASA/National Archives, no audio.