The flight of STS-121 (ISS Mission ULF-1.1) opened with the liftoff of Space Shuttle Discovery from Launch Complex 39-B , Kennedy Space Center, at 1:36 PM CDT (18:36 GMT) on 4 July 2006. Appropriately, this was American Independence Day as well. After some 9 minutes of powered flight, MECO (Main Engine Cut Off) occurred, and orbit was achieved.

As with the previous Shuttle flight, STS-114, a great deal of attention was focused on the performance of the foam insulation on the External Fuel Tank. Changes and modifications to this component were successful, and after extensive on-orbit inspection of the heat shield, NASA engineers pronounced Discovery safe for re-entry at mission end.

Docking with ISS was accomplished on 6 July, roughly two days after launch. The CREW of Discovery were welcomed by ISS Expedition 13 Commander Pavel Vinogradov, and Flight Engineer Jeffrey Williams, in the traditional Russian way, with the offering bread and salt. This flight also delivered ESA (European Space Agency) Astronaut Thomas Reiter, of Germany, to join the ISS Expedition 13 crew. His addition marked the first time ISSy has boasted a crew of three since spring 2003, following the loss of Columbia.

Discovery brought with her the Italian built MPLM (Multi-Purpose Logistics Module) "Leonardo". This spaceborne "moving van" contained around 15 tons (13,600kg) of equipment and supplies for ISSy. Once the new materiel was unloaded, superfluous equipment crowding the limited space aboard ISSy was stowed for return to Earth.

Three EVAs (Extra-Vehicular Activity or spacewalk) were mounted in US spacesuits from the Quest Airlock. Astronauts Piers Sellers and Michael Fossum tested methods for repairing damaged heat shield components, and performed repairs to the Mobile Transporter, damaged by accident in December 2005. In addition, the two Astronauts tested the feasability of using the 50 foot (15.24m) robotic arm extension. This extension was used with a special camera to inspect the belly of the orbiter for damage. In this case, engineers at Houston wanted to know if extended arm could be effectively used to carry Astronauts on the end. It was hoped that they would be able to work from this lofty perch. The experiment was a success.

After some nine days of joint operations with the ISSy crew, farewells were made, and Discovery separated from ISSy at 4:08 AM CDT (9:08 GMT) 15 July 2006 to fly solo for

the next two days. STS-121 came to an end with the safe landing of Discovery at the KSC Shuttle Landing Facility , runway 15, at 8:15 AM CDT (13:15 GMT) on 17 July 2006. This mission was highly successful, the brave crew accomplishing every task mapped out for them. Total duration: 12 days 18 hours 38 minutes. The fact that Discovery and her crew performed so flawlessly also opened the door for the resumption of ISS construction flights again. These had been suspended since the fatal loss of Columbia in February 2003. Congratulations are in order for all concerned.

On 8 July 2006, the Shuttle/Station Complex was orbiting high over the western Pacific Ocean, southeast of Japan. Local time was mid-day. Of interest is the fact that this event took place on same flight day as the Brazil incident.

The incident was broadcast "live" on NASA Select TV, and in color as well. The INCO was in control of Discovery's payload bay camera whilst the event took place.

This happening was shown in two separate parts, separated by some three minutes. The anomaly was seen a distance away from Discovery and ISSy. We don't know how far though, as distances are almost impossible for the human eye to discern in space.

The object in question had an orb-like appearance, and was "hovering" over the limb of the daylit Earth. "Hovering" is a bit of a misnomer, since to be stationary realative to the Shuttle/Station Complex, the object actually would have been on the exact same orbit as our spacecraft. Since the anomaly didn't change its position, even a tiny fraction, during the three minutes, we can safely assume that it was not astronomical in nature. As an example, were this thing the Moon, it would have moved visibly during the interval between broadcast segments. It did NOT.

Was it a man-made satellite, or bit of space junk? This is highly unlikely, since ISSy and the Shuttles are steered away from encounters with known sateliites and debris in space. NASA takes great care to keep our manned spacecraft a desired minimum of 50 miles (80 km) from such things. Additionally, there is a very low likelyhood that any such space junk, or satellite, would be on the same EXACT orbit as the Shuttle/Station Complex.

Some might say that the object is a lens flare, which is an artifact caused by the Sun hitting the glass lenses of the camera at an oblique angle. I believe we can rule this out too. As can be easily seen in the animated GIFs below, the Solar angle changes dramatically in the interim between frames 1 and 2. Lens flares are extremely common, but as the angle of the Sun changes, so does the position of the flares. We don't see any corresponding movement on the part of the anomaly as the Sun's angle changes.

A visual presentation has been put together for your study. We hope that it makes the situation clear enough. So, let's have a closer look at this event now, shall we?

Here we have a frame of the animated tracker used by NASA to show where the Shuttle/Station Complex is at any given time.

Note the YELLOW circle denoting the location of Discovery and ISSy at the time of the event. In ths case, they are over the Pacific Ocean, southeast of Japan.

This image shows where to look for the anomaly out in space. The YELLOW circle is included to help locate it.

Now we have zoomed in 200%. It's a much closer look at the anomaly. Please note that in frame 1, the object seems to have a "tail", rather like a comet. There were no comets in the sky in July 2006 which would have been visible to this camera, however. So it is not astronomical in nature.

What was that object "hovering" out beyond the Shuttle/Station Complex on 8 July 2006? It couldn't have been ice or debris. Those don't stay in one spot over time. The same rule applies to astronomical bodies. Due to the orbital speed of the spacecraft at 17,500 mph (28,000 km/h), heavenly bodies appear to rapidly cross the field of view. There are no satellites on the exact same orbit as the Shuttle/Station Complex, so that option is closed. Lens flares are not the answer either, since the Sun "moves" like any other astronomical object because of the previously cited orbital velocity of the spacecraft. This solar motion would have caused a common lens flare to move across the screen also.

For these reasons, I must classify the anomaly as unknown.

***

Back To Article

At all times during this incident, the camera was under the control of the INCO in Houston Mission Control.

(INCO - INstrument & Communication Officer - The man in Houston Mission Control Center who is responsible for operating the Shuttle payload bay, and robotic arm, cameras. He also remotely operates the helmet cameras in space suits. In the case of ISS, this officer is referred to as the CATO - Communications And Tracking Officer. In both cases, these persons CONTROL everything which is PERMITTED to go out on broadcast to the public. It is a commonly believed falacy that the cameras are operated by Astronauts & Cosmonauts on the Shuttles, and Space Station. Very little camera work is done by the crews. They're way too busy for that.)

At the end of the day, it's up to YOU to draw your own conclusions.

© 2006 Jeff Challender