ksc-84pc-476

KSC-84PC-476 (For release Aug. 29, 1984) --- Orbiter Discovery is poised on Launch Pad 39A as the sun sets the evening prior to its maiden launch. Space shuttle Discovery (STS-41D) was successfully launched at 8:41 a.m. Aug. 30, 1984, after two failed attempts in June. Carrying a crew of six astronauts and three satellites, Discovery is the third in NASA?s stable of four Space Transportation System orbiters. The six-person crew includes Commander Henry Hartsfield, Pilot Michael Coats, Mission Specialists Judith Resnik, Mike Mullane and Steve Hawley and the first commercial payload specialist, Charles Walker of McDonnell Douglas. Photo credit: NASA