STS-49 Endeavour, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 105, crew insignia

STS049-S-001 (March 1991) --- The patch, designed by its crew members, captures spaceflight's spirit of exploration which has its origins in the early seagoing vessels that explored the uncharted reaches of Earth and its oceans. The ship depicted on the patch is HMS Endeavour, the sailing vessel which Captain James Cook commanded on his first scientific expedition to the South Pacific. Just as Captain Cook engaged in unprecedented feats of exploration during his voyage, on the space shuttle Endeavour's maiden flight, its crew will expand the horizons of space operations with an unprecedented rendezvous and series of three spacewalks. During three consecutive days of extravehicular activity (EVA), the crew will conduct one spacewalk to retrieve, repair and deploy the Intelsat IV-F3 communications satellite, and two additional EVA's to evaluate potential Space Station Freedom assembly concepts. The flags flying high on Endeavour's masts wear the colors of the two schools that won the nationwide contest when Endeavour was chosen as the name of NASA's newest space shuttle: Senatobia (Mississippi) Middle School and Tallulah Falls (Georgia) School. The NASA insignia design for space shuttle flights is reserved for use by the astronauts and for other official use as the NASA Administrator may authorize. Public availability has been approved only in the form of illustrations by the various news media. When and if there is any change in this policy, which is not anticipated, it will be publicly announced. Photo credit: NASA