STS-6 Crew-Signed Challenger Launch Photo — Weitz, Bobko, Musgrave & Peterson View Watchlist >
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Lot # F611
System ID # 29335597
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STS-6 Crew-Signed Challenger Launch Photograph — Weitz, Bobko, Musgrave & Peterson
Color photograph capturing the April 1983 launch of Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-6 — the orbiter's maiden flight — clearing Pad 39A in a billowing cloud of exhaust, the external tank in its unpainted orange and the twin solid rocket boosters lit. The print is mounted to a board and signed in ink by all four crew members: Paul Weitz (Commander), Karol "Bo" Bobko (Pilot), Story Musgrave and Don Peterson (Mission Specialists). A printed "STS-6 CREW" label is applied below the signatures.
Above the image, an inked inscription reads "To TDRS [recipient name altered], Thanks for your support." STS-6 deployed the first Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-1) and marked the first U.S. spacewalk of the Shuttle era, performed by Musgrave and Peterson. The dedication ties this piece directly to the TDRS program support team — a crew presentation to someone who worked the mission from the ground, not a generic signed photo.
History
The TDRS program was central to STS-6 in ways that went well beyond the launch itself. After deployment from Challenger's cargo bay, TDRS-1 failed to reach its intended geostationary orbit due to a malfunction of the Inertial Upper Stage booster. What followed was a months-long recovery effort led from White Sands Ground Terminal in New Mexico — an operation that used the satellite's own small thrusters to gradually maneuver it to a usable position. The rescue saved the TDRSS program. The crew's "Thanks for your support" inscription acknowledges exactly the kind of ground-team contribution that never made the headlines.
Provenance
The inscription was originally dedicated to George Harris, a member of the TDRS program support team. His name within the inscription has been deliberately altered and is no longer legible on the mount. Chain of custody beyond the original recipient is not further documented. A Certificate of Authenticity issued by Mesilla Valley Estate Sales accompanies this lot.
CONDITION
Good. Color fading to the photographic image consistent with age. The mount board shows minor paper damage including a tan water stain at the lower left near the Weitz and Bobko signatures and light staining along the top edge where part of the inscription has lifted. Signatures remain legible; the "STS-6 CREW" label is intact.
DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS
- Overall (mount): 20" W × 16" H × 1/16" D
- Format: Color photograph mounted to board, unframed
- Mission: STS-6, Space Shuttle Challenger, April 1983
- Signed by: Paul Weitz, Karol "Bo" Bobko, Story Musgrave, Don Peterson
- Inscription: "To TDRS [name altered], Thanks for your support"
- Original recipient: George Harris (TDRS program support team)
- Verso notation: S84-26325
- Certificate of Authenticity: Mesilla Valley Estate Sales
