NASA Langley Research Center
Hampton, Virginia

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Chronology

1970	-	NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) proposed conceptual forerunner of LDEF, called Meteoroid and Exposure Module (MEM), to be first Shuttle payload.
June, 1974	-	LDEF Project formally under way, managed by LaRC for NASA's Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology (OAST).
January, 1976 to August, 1978	-	LDEF structure designed and fabricated at LaRC
Summer 1981	-	LDEF preparations for December, 1983 target launch date
September, 1981	-	First international meeting of LDEF experimenters held at LaRC.
1982	-	LDEF structure tested for its ability to withstand Shuttle-induced loads
June, 1983	-	LDEF shipped to KSC and placed in SAEF-2.
April 7, 1984	-	STS 41-C (Shuttle Challenger) places LDEF in a nearly circular orbit at altitude of 275 miles at 12:26 p.m. EST
March, 1985	-	Planned LDEF retrieval (via STS 51-D) deferred to later Shuttle flight.
January, 1986 to September, 1988	-	LDEF's stay in space extended indefinitely when all Shuttle operations were suspended due to the loss of Challenger.
1987 / 1988	-	Solar activity intensity threatens to accelerate decay of LDEF's orbit, influencing retrieval plans; retrieval target set for July, 1989.
June, 1989	-	LDEF retrieval flight date, after slipping from July and then November, set for December 18 launch of Shuttle Columbia.
December 18, 1989	-	STS-32 launch postponed until second week of January.
January, 1990	-	STS-32 launched on January 9; LDEF retrieved at 9:16 a.m. CST on January 12; Columbia lands at Edwards Air Force Base, California, January 20.
January 26, 1990	-	Columbia, with LDEF still in its payload bay, returns to KSC via ferry flight from Edwards Air Force Base.
January 30-31, 1990	-	LDEF removed from Columbia in Orbiter Processing Facility, placed in a special payload canister, and transported to Operations and Checkout (O&C) Building.
February 1-2, 1990	-	LDEF placed in the LDEF Assembly and Transportation System (LATS) and moved to SAEF-2 for experiment deintegration.
February 5-22, 1990	-	Deintegration preparation activities take place, including extensive inspection and photo-documentation.
February 23 to March 29, 1990	-	Experiment trays removed, closely inspected, individually photo-documented, packed, and shipped to home institutions for comprehensive data analysis.
April and May, 1990	-	Deintegration wrap-up, including comprehensive investigation and photo-documentation of the LDEF structure.
June 2-8, 1991	-	First LDEF Post-Retieval Symposium held in Kissimmee, Florida.
June 1-5, 1992	-	Second LDEF Post-Retieval Symposium held in San Diego, California.
November 8-12, 1993	-	Third LDEF Post-Retieval Symposium held in Williamsburg, Virginia.

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Source:
Levine, Arlene (1991) LDEF - 69 Months in Space: First Post-Retrieval Sysmposium, NASA Conference Publication 3134.

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