Ponadstandardowa ratunkowa operacja Intelstata VI z udziałem Hieba i 2. innych astronautów, wykonujących EVA, do dziś pozostaje jedyną w swoim rodzaju.Too Tall Heib, AstronautBy Merry Helm Published May 2, 2022 at 7:06 PM CDT 9/21/2005:
(...) The Syracuse Post Standard reported, “Astronauts Plan Tricky Space Ballet... All in all, it is a risky, last-ditch effort to salvage a $157 million satellite... If the rescue attempt fails, all is lost. The satellite is too large to be carried back to Earth in the shuttle. [Such rescue attempts have been tried before], but none have approached the ambition and intricacy of this one.”
On May 11th, 1992, the attempt did indeed fail. A light tap from the capture arm caused the satellite to wobble and almost collide with the ship, and a second attempt failed, as well.
On the ground, Americans were distracted by Rodney King and the L.A. riots. Up in the Endeavor, fuel was running low and time was short. The astronauts decided to take matters into their own hands, and in an unprecedented move, Thuot, Hieb and Tom Akers left the ship together. It was the first time three astronauts were in a space walk at the same time, and it was a long one. After many grueling hours, Thuot and Hieb finally grabbed the 17x12 foot craft with their gloved hands, and Akers helped them pull it into the payload bay. Headlines read, “Got It!”
https://news.prairiepublic.org/show/dakota-datebook-archive/2022-05-02/too-tall-heib-astronautAstronaut Grows Too TallBy The Associated Press July 12, 1994
Richard J. Hieb, the payload commander of the space shuttle Columbia, is growing in orbit, and he now exceeds N.A.S.A.'s height limit for astronauts.
Mr. Hieb started the two-week laboratory mission on Friday at 6 feet 3 inches. Today, he topped 6 feet 4, the limit for someone on a space shuttle.
"According to my quick calculations here, I seem to have grown about an inch or so. So I'm now too tall to fly in space," Mr. Hieb informed payload controllers after measuring himself. "And that's without slipper-socks."
A ground controller in Alabama said, "I just hope the flight director's not listening."
"We heard that," answered a voice from Mission Control in Houston.
Astronauts tend to grow two or more inches in space because the spine becomes elongated in the absence of gravity. The phenomenon is often accompanied by back pain.
Mr. Hieb and Dr. Chiaki Naito-Mukai, a Japanese heart surgeon, are measuring themselves each morning aboard Columbia so researchers can compare growth to soreness. There is no word yet on Dr. Mukai's height, but she started out at 5 feet 2.
Aspiring astronauts must be at least 4 feet 10 1/2 inches to be accepted into the program and at least 5 feet 4 to be a shuttle pilot. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration requires that astronauts be able to reach the controls and fit into the space suits. If they were too tall, they would be cramped in their seats.
Some of the animals aboard Columbia are also growing. The 144 newt eggs sent into space by developmental biologists are already sprouting tails. A few are even developing gills.
https://www.nytimes.com/1994/07/12/science/astronaut-grows-too-tall.htmlNL Moonshots '24 Astronaut visit: Rick Hieb and Franz Viehböck02 October 2024 10:30
About NL Moonshots '24From September 30 to October 6, 2024, the XXXV Planetary Congress of the Association of Space Explorers will take place in the Netherlands. This event, which will bring together over one hundred international astronauts, is the driving force behind the NL Moonshots '24 program.
Over the past six months, 100 student teams have been developing their moonshots —smart, innovative solutions to a major societal challenge. Drawing inspiration from the extraordinary perspective of astronauts in space, these moonshots can cover a wide range of topics: from humanity’s relationship with Earth to the cutting edge of technology and artificial intelligence. (...)
https://www.tudelft.nl/en/events/2024/lr/nl-moonshots-24-astronaut-visit-rick-hieb-and-franz-viehboeckhttps://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/name-tag-shuttle-astronaut-hieb/nasm_A200500780002023
https://x.com/ASE_Astronauts/status/1704933787107311991Association of Space Explorers @ASE_Astronauts 8:00 PM · Sep 21, 2024
#HappyBirthday to ASE Life Member and ASE International Executive Committee Member Richard Hieb, who flew to space three times between 1991 and 1994 (STS-39, STS-49, and STS-65)!
https://twitter.com/ASE_Astronauts/status/1837552586519388236Association of Space Explorers @ASE_Astronauts 9:00 PM · Sep 21, 2025
#ASEspotlight: Richard Hieb 💫
ASE-USA President & ASE Life Member Hieb read a book by Stephen Hawking during a lower body negative pressure experiment aboard Space Shuttle Columbia in 1994.
Fun fact: He was part of the 1st (& only) 3-person EVA!
Happy 70th birthday, Rick! 🎉
https://twitter.com/ASE_Astronauts/status/1969839155669541135
Wątek: RJ Hieb - 21.09.1955 (Przeczytany 260 razy)