Guy Bluford,First African American in Space: 40 Years of inspiration

In 1983, NASA's Guy Bluford broke barriers and made
history as the first African American astronaut in
space. Hear from Bluford himself, see footage from
his Space Shuttle missions, and celebrate the
milestones that forever changed the landscape of
space exploration.
Bluford's first mission was STS-8, which launched
from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on Aug. 30,
1983. This was the third flight for the Challenger
orbiter, and the first mission with a night launch and
night landing. During the mission, the STS-8 crew
deployed the Indian National Satellite (|NSAT-1B),
operated the Canadian-built RMS with the Payload
Flight Test Article (PFTA), operated the Continuous
Flow Electrophoresis System (CFES) with live cellI
samples, conducted medical measurements to
understand biophysiological effects of spaceflight,
and activated four "Getaway Special" canisters. STS-8
completed 98 orbits of the Earth in 145 hours before
landing at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on Sept.
5, 1983.