The Chinese leadership decided that an independent manned space program could be afforded. The Chinese National Manned Space Program was given the designation Project 921. The 921-1 manned capsule entered full scale development in 1993 and the 921-2 space station in 1999. Only preliminary work was authorised on the 921-3 reusable spaceplane.

High resolution photo reconnaissance; returned film in two small SpK capsules during the mission and with the main capsule at completion of the mission. References: 1 , 2 , 6 , 179 .

Stationed at 103 deg E. Transmission of Russian radio and television programmes in Siberia and the solution of communications problems in Russia's eastern regions. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 67 , 111 , 274 .

Photo/digital surveillance. References: 1 , 2 , 6 .

Global Positioning System. Spacecraft engaged in research and exploration of the upper atmosphere or outer space (US Cat B). References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

Military navigation satellite. Positioned in plane 2 of constellation. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 107 .

Stationed at 55 deg W. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

Stationed at 3 deg E. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

Unmanned resupply vessel to Mir. Docked with Mir on 21 Apr 1992 23:21:59 GMT. Undocked on 27 Jun 1992 21:34:44 GMT. Destroyed in reentry on 28 Jun 1992 00:02:51 GMT. Total free-flight time 2.18 days. Total docked time 66.93 days. References: 1 , 2 , 6 , 275 .

NASA researchers conducted a flight test program to develop the Spacewedge vehicle design. The first test vehicle (Wedge 1) was just four ft long, and weighed 120 lb. It was initially launched from a hillside near Tehachapi; the test program then moved to Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards AFB, and to a sport parachute (Skydive) drop zone at California City, CA.

Signals intelligence satellite; possibly some kind of imaging also done. On-board propulsion boosts spacecraft to 800 km operating orbit. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 172 .

Topographic mapping for the Army General Staff. References: 1 , 2 , 6 , 101 , 102 .

Investigation of the natural resources of the Earth for the various branches of the national economy, the solution of environmental problems, and international cooperation. References: 1 , 2 , 6 .

Retrieved Intelsat 6 and attached new SRM. First active dual rendezvous of two orbiting spacecraft (Endeavour and Intelsat-Vl) First deployment of a drag chute on the orbiter fleet. Payloads: Intelsat-Vl reboost mission hardware, Assembly of Station by EVA Methods (ASEM), Commercial Protein Crystal Growth (CPCG), Air Force Maui Optical Site (AMOS) Calibration Test, Ultraviolet Plume Instrument (UVPl). Additional Details: STS-49. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 .

Attempted capture of Intelsat V1. References: 66 .

Second attempted capture of Intelsat V1. References: 66 .

Intelsat V1 finally captured in first three-person spacewalk. References: 66 .

Tested tools and techniques for assembly of the International Space Station. References: 66 .

Stationed at 118 deg E. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

Stretched Rohini Satellite Series; carried gamma-ray detector, ionosphere monitor. SROSS-C satellite carries two scientific payloads: 1) Retarding Potential Analyser (RPA), consisting of two planar detectors to measure plasma parameters and investigate energetics of the equatorial ionosphere. (2) Gamma Ray Burst (GRB) detectors, consist ing of two scintillation detectors to study celestial gamma ray bursts in the energy range of 20 keV to 3000 keV. Launch vehicle: Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

High resolution photo reconnaissance; returned film in two small SpK capsules during the mission and with the main capsule at completion of the mission. References: 1 , 2 , 6 , 179 .

Eight satellites launched by a single carrier rocket. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

Extreme Ultra-Violet Explorer; mapped galactic EUV sources. The Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer was switched off on February 2, 2001. NASA decided to terminate funding for the mission, even though the spacecraft was still operating well. The sky survey was completed in January 1993 and after that the EUVE was used by guest astronomers for observations of specific targets. The final observations were made on January 26, 2001. After end-of-life tests of the never-used backup high voltage supplies and checking the remaining battery capacity, EUVE was stabilized pointing away from the Sun and sent into safehold at 2359 GMT on January 31. The transmitters were commanded off on February 2. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 .

Stationed at 21.5 deg W. Intelsat K is a single spacecraft purchased to meet critical requirements for Ku-band capacity over the Atlantic region, driven primarily by international broadcasters. The satellite was purchased from GE Americom while under construction (as Satcom K4) and required extensive payload modifications. Spacecraft: Based on GE 5000 series bus.3-axis stabilised using magnetotorquers. Hydrazine propulsion system. Two large solar panels with 1-axis articulation provide 4800 W BOL.4 50 Ahr NiH batteries. Payload: 16 Ku-band transponders which can be configured into 32 high quality television channels. Permits access from ground antennas 1.2 meters dia. and smaller. Launch vehicle put payload into geosynchronous transfer orbit with GCS trajectory option. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 278 .

A second vehicle to test autonomous parasail spacecraft recovery was fabricated with the same external geometry and weight as Wedge 1. It was dropped from a Cessna U-206 and a Rans S-12 ultralight. A total of 36 flight tests were made, the last taking place on February 12, 1993. These flights verified the manual control and autonomous landing systems of the vehicle. Phase II of the program ran from March 1993 to March 1995, and encompassed 45 flights.

LEAP-2. Missile Tracking and Discrimination for SDIO.

Capsule reentered 7/9/92. Investigation of the natural resources of the Earth in the interests of the various branches of the national economy. References: 1 , 2 , 6 .

Carried United States Microgravity Laboratory. First extended-duration mission. Payloads: United States Microgravity Laboratory (USML)-1; Orbital Acceleration Research Experiment (OARE); Investigations Into Polymer Membrane Processing (IPMP), Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX)-ll; Ultraviolet Plume Instrument (UVPl) . Additional Details: STS-50. References: 1 , 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 .

Unmanned resupply vessel to Mir. An initial docking attempt on 2 Jul 1992 was a failure. Docked with Mir on 4 Jul 1992 16:55:13 GMT. Undocked on 24 Jul 1992 04:14:00 GMT. Destroyed in reentry on 24 Jul 1992 08:03:35 GMT. Total free-flight time 4.17 days. Total docked time 19.47 days. It was docked to Mir for only a few weeks, since on 26 Jul the Soyuz TM-15 was to be launched with a replacement crew and would need to use the same docking port. References: 1 , 2 , 6 , 275 .