Mission Control Status Report #1
STS-72

Thursday, January 11, 1996   6:30 a.m.

Endeavour lit up the Florida sky as it rocketed into orbit at 3:41
a.m. CST today on a Japanese satellite retrieval mission. The launch
was delayed 23 minutes due to communication configuration problems
between the Mission Control Center in Houston and ground control
stations near the launch site. The problems were quickly resolved and
Endeavour embarked on its 10th flight and the first flight of the new
year. Today's launch also marked the 74th shuttle launch in the
program's history.

At launch time, the Japanese Space Flyer Unit satellite was over
central Australia, about 7,961 nautical miles ahead of Endeavour. The
six member crew is expected to grapple and capture the satellite early
Saturday morning.

Once on orbit, the astronauts began to configure Endeavour for
on-orbit operations. The shuttle's payload bay doors were opened
about 90 minutes into the flight, followed by a 'go' for
on-orbit operations from flight director Jeff Bantle.

During the nine day mission, the international crew will retrieve the
SFU, a science satellite launched by the Japanese last
March. Additionally, the crew will deploy and retrieve a second
spacecraft carrying NASA-sponsored experiments. Later in the mission
crew members Dan Barry, Leroy Chiao and Winston Scott, will conduct
two six-hour spacewalks to test tools and procedures that will be used
in the assembly and maintenance of the International Space Station.

The astronauts will begin an eight-hour sleep period at 11:11
a.m. CST, and will receive a wake-up call from Mission Control at 7:11
p.m. today to begin their first full day on orbit.

All systems on board Endeavour are performing well with the shuttle
traveling around the Earth in a 246 x 95 nautical mile orbit.