In 1992, NASA launched one of the most ambitious rescue missions in spaceflight history: sending astronauts to capture a massive 9,000-pound satellite with their bare hands while orbiting Earth at approximately 17,500 miles per hour. The satellite, INTELSAT VI, had been stranded in the wrong orbit for over two years after a rocket malfunction prevented it from reaching its intended destination, more than 20,000 miles above. To recover the spacecraft, NASA launched the brand-new Space Shuttle Endeavour on its maiden flight, carrying seven astronauts, a replacement rocket motor, and a specially designed capture device. But what seemed like a relatively straightforward operation quickly became a dangerous nightmare. Astronaut Pierre Thuot repeatedly attempted to attach a 15-foot capture bar to the enormous satellite, only to send it wobbling uncontrollably through space. After two failed spacewalks, NASA was running dangerously low on maneuvering fuel, leaving the crew with just one final opportunity. With no conventional solution remaining, the astronauts developed an extraordinary plan: three men would venture outside Endeavour simultaneously, position themselves around the rotating satellite, and physically grab it before it drifted away. It was a maneuver never attempted before, with the enormous spacecraft floating dangerously close to the Shuttle's open cargo bay. One wrong movement could damage Endeavour or send the satellite spinning out of reach. Against incredible odds, astronauts Pierre Thuot, Richard Hieb, and Thomas Akers successfully caught INTELSAT, secured it to the Shuttle's robotic arm, and attached the replacement rocket motor that finally carried it toward its proper orbit. Their historic eight-hour, 29-minute spacewalk became the longest American spacewalk at the time and marked the first three-person spacewalk in history. This is the incredible story of NASA's seemingly impossible satellite rescue, a mission where three astronauts accomplished something no one had ever attempted: catching nearly 9,000 pounds of spacecraft with nothing but their gloved hands.
Source: Dark Space
