Tom Henricks Signed STS-70 Discovery First Day Cover — "The Woodpecker Mission," View Watchlist >
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Lot # Nasa110X
System ID # 29524549
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Tom Henricks Signed STS-70 Discovery First Day Cover — Commander, "The Woodpecker Mission," 1995
The summer of 1995, and a colony of northern flickers nearly stopped a Space Shuttle launch. The birds kept drilling into the external tank foam at Pad 39B — four separate scrub decisions, 39 holes patched, the crews sent home and called back twice. When Discovery finally cleared the tower on July 13, it did so on the strength of a wire mesh cage and the stubbornness of mission managers who refused to let a woodpecker win. That absurd, human story is baked into every piece of STS-70 memorabilia. This cover is the mission's document.
The face carries the octagonal crew patch naming all five crew members — Henricks, Kregel, Currie, Thomas, and Weber — and is franked with a 32¢ Flag Over Porch stamp tied by a sharp Kennedy Space Center, FL pictorial cancel dated July 22, 1995. Across the right half runs a bold, fully legible black-ink signature: Tom Henricks, the mission's commander. Henricks flew four shuttle missions and became the first astronaut to log more than 1,000 hours as a shuttle pilot and commander — a benchmark that defined a generation of orbiter experience. His signature reads cleanly and with authority.
About Tom Henricks
Thomas J. "Tom" Henricks is a retired Air Force colonel, fighter pilot, and four-time shuttle astronaut who logged more than 1,000 hours aboard the orbiter across missions STS-44, STS-55, STS-70, and STS-78. He holds the distinction of being the first astronaut to accumulate that milestone in the pilot and commander seat — a mark of both technical mastery and institutional trust from NASA. As commander of STS-70, he oversaw the successful deployment of the seventh Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-G), extending the space-based communication network that serves NASA to this day. For space memorabilia collectors, a Henricks signature on a STS-70 cover sits at the intersection of milestone career accomplishment and a flight with a story everyone remembers — the one the woodpeckers almost stopped.
Authenticity
Signature attributed to Tom Henricks based on comparison with known examples. Mesilla Valley Estate Sales will issue a Certificate of Authenticity with this lot.
CONDITION
Very Good. Cover is clean and bright with a crisp, well-struck cancellation and a bold, uninterrupted autograph. Faint handling and minor toning to the reverse; no creasing or tears to the front.
DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS
- 3 5/8" × 6 1/2"
- Mission: STS-70, Space Shuttle Discovery (OV-103)
- Launch Date: July 13, 1995
- Cancel: Kennedy Space Center, FL — July 22, 1995
- Stamp: 32¢ Flag Over Porch
- Signed: Tom Henricks (Commander, STS-70)
- COA: Mesilla Valley Estate Sales
