Table of Contents

Mission Crew

The international STS-78 crew was composed of seven astronauts from NASA, ESA and CSA, namely: the Commander, Colonel Terence T. Henricks, the Pilot, Kevin R. Kregel, the LMS Payload Commander and Flight Engineer, Lieutenant-Colonel Susan J. Helms, the two Mission Specialists, Dr. Richard M. Linnehan and CMDR Charles E. Brady and the two Payload Specialists, Dr. Jean-Jacques Favier and Canada's Dr. Bob Thirsk.

The objective of the Life and Microgravity Spacelab Mission was to carry out some 41 experiments studying the effects of gravity on the human body, on the development of plants and animals, on the processing of protein crystals and metallic alloys and on fluid behaviour.

Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Dr. Bob Thirsk was a Payload Specialist on this mission and participated in and conducted several investigations with his international colleagues.

The results of the Canadian life sciences Torso Rotation Experiment (TRE) led by McGill University in Montreal and sponsored by the CSA will help develop a cure for motion sickness and morning sickness in pregnancy.

TRE tested the crew in space to determine what causes space and motion sickness. During the mission, the astronauts wore monitoring equipment while performing certain activities. The device noted where the astronauts' eyes and heads were pointing when they moved. The data were recorded, determining how the astronauts move their heads in relation to their bodies. Four astronauts, including Canadian Bob Thirsk, took part in this study.

Dr. Bob Thirsk was selected to become an astronaut in 1983 and began astronaut training in 1984. He served as back-up Payload Specialist to Marc Garneau for Mission 41-G in October of 1984. He was leader of an international team investigating the effects of weightlessness on the body's venous system. He has designed an experimental "anti-gravity" suit that may help astronauts readapt to life on Earth with greater ease.

With the 17-day Mission STS-78, Canadian astronaut Bob Thirsk participated in the longest mission in the history of shuttle flights.