On this day in 1983 Col. Brewster Shaw, Jr. (USAF) began his first trip into space

On this day in 1983 Col. Brewster Shaw, Jr. (USAF) began his first trip into space as pilot of STS-9 Columbia.  Col. Shaw’s commander was John Young, one of 12 moonwalkers who also few two Gemini, two Apollo and two space shuttle missions.  Columbia carried the European Space Agency’s Spacelab, a reusable pressurized experiment module, in her payload bay.  The six crew members worked in two teams of three, each working a 12 hour shift to maximize the use of Spacelab with Col. Shaw assigned to the Blue Team.  With Columbia, Spacelab and the crew all performing so well, mission controllers extended the mission by one day.  They spent 10 days, 7 hours, 47 minutes and 24 seconds off the planet, while completing 72 experiments. Col. Shaw’s uniform, flightsuit, and other donated items are on display at Michigan’s Military and Space Heroes Museum, and can be seen daily 10am-5pm.  Honor.  Respect.  Remember.