While most of us get around on bikes or skateboards, Shannon usually takes a space shuttle. She's flown lots of missions such as the STS-51G, STS-34, STS-43, STS-58, STS-76, and STS-79, so she might even have her own set of shuttle keys by now! (If you want to know what STS stands for, see our glossary)

Mission STS 51-G

Dr Lucid's first flight was as a mission specialist aboard the 18th Shuttle mission

(STS 51-G, on 17 June 1985). This flight reached an orbital altitude of 209 nautical miles above the Earth’s atmosphere. The crew’s job on this mission was to deploy communications satellites for Mexico (Morelos), the Arab League (Arabsat), and the United States (AT&T Telstar).

The astronauts used the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) to deploy and later retrieve the first SPARTAN (Shuttle Pointed Autonomous Research Tool for Astronomy) satellite which performed 17 hours of x-ray astronomy experiments. The crew also activated six Getaway Specials and participated in biomedical experiments.

This mission took seven days and during this time shuttle Discovery orbited the Earth 112 times and covered a distance of 2,916,127 miles. The shuttle landed on 24 June 1985 at the Edward’s Air Force Base in California.

Mission STS-34

Dr Lucid next flew aboard the shuttle Atlantis (STS-34) which was launched on 18 October 1989. During their 79 orbits of the Earth, the crew members successfully deployed the Galileo spacecraft. The boosters fired, sending Galileo on a six-year journey to explore Jupiter. Galileo received gravitational boosts from Venus and Earth with observational fly-bys of the asteroids Gaspra and Ida. The crew operated instruments which mapped the atmospheric ozone and performed numerous secondary experiments involving radiation measurements, lightning research and a student experiment on ice crystal growth in space.

Also on board was the second flight of the IMAX project. This project was a collaboration between NASA and the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum. This project involved taking film of the crew as they worked in the payload bay and flight deck areas. It also took spectacular images of space and Earth. The 70mm film cameras and projectors record and display large-screen colour motion picture images. This film was then developed by the IMAX Systems Corporation back on Earth. The film from both this mission and the first flight of the IMAX project now form the basis for the IMAX production, "The Dream is Alive."

In less than a five-day trip, the shuttle Atlantis returned to Edward’s Air Force Base on 23 October 1989 with 4,000 feet of film.

Mission STS-43

Dr Lucid’s next mission was once again aboard the shuttle Atlantis, as the mission specialist. This nine-day mission was called STS-43 and was launched on 2 August 1991.

On this mission the crew had to deploy the fifth Tracking and Data Relay Satellite which was attached to boosters and propelling into orbit. In addition, the crew also conducted 32 physical, material and life-science experiments. After 142 orbits of Earth over eight days, the shuttle had travelled 3,700,400 miles and landed at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on 11 August 1991.

Mission STS-58

Dr Lucid’s next journey into space was a 14-day mission aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia which launched on 18 October 1993. This seven-person, life-science research mission was considered by NASA management, as ‘the most successful and efficient Spacelab flight.’ STS-58 is the 4th longest mission in US manned space history.

The experiments performed on Columbia provided the most detailed measurements acquired in the space environment since the Skylab programme in 1973 and 1974. The crew performed neurovestibular, cardiovascular, cardiopulmonary, metabolic, and musculoskeletal medical experiments on themselves and 48 rats (held in 24 cages).

Astronauts wore headsets that recorded head movements and they used other equipment to take measurements of the detrimental effects of microgravity.

Also during this mission Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX), an on-board ham radio, allowed the crew to take time out to answer Tennessee and Texas school children's questions.

This 14-day mission set the duration record for the shuttle and landed on 1 November 1993.

Mission STS-76

Dr Lucid, along with the crew of the shuttle Atlantis, launched their next mission, STS-76 on 21 March 1996 which docked with the Russian Space Station Mir.

She lived on Mir for 107 days (until 7 July 1996). Dr Lucid had trained in Star City, Russia for her five-month stay aboard Mir and became the second American to stay on the space station.

The space shuttle Atlantis and her crew, including Dr Lucid, performed the 3rd MIR docking and an extravehicular activity (EVA). Mission Specialists Godwin and Clifford performed a six-hour spacewalk attaching four experiments, known collectively as the Mir Environmental Effects Payload, onto the Mir docking module. Other crew members transferred over 1,900 pounds (862 kg) of equipment to Mir, including a gyrodyne, a transformer, some batteries, food, water, film and clothing.

After orbiting the Earth 145 times over nine days, the shuttle Atlantis landed on 31 March 1996, leaving Dr Lucid behind to begin her time aboard Mir.

Mission STS-79

Dr Lucid returned to Earth aboard the space shuttle Atlantis after the 4th Mir docking mission. It was launched on 16 September 1996, with its main payload which was the Spacehab. The shuttle remained in orbit for nine days and landed on 26 September 1996.