Manley Lanier "Sonny" Carter Jr., M.D., , was an American chemist, physician, professional soccer player, naval officer and aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut who flew on STS-33.
Carter's official NASA portrait, 1984
Sonny Carter (standing row, left) with his STS-33 crewmates
Space Mirror Memorial Sonny Carter
Plaque of Carter at the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame
STS-33 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission, during which Space Shuttle Discovery deployed a payload for the United States Department of Defense (DoD). It was the 32nd shuttle mission overall, the ninth flight of Discovery, the fifth shuttle mission in support of the DoD, the seventh post-Space Shuttle Challenger disaster mission and the last Shuttle mission of the 1980s. Due to the nature of the mission, specific details remain classified. Discovery lifted off from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Florida, on November 22, 1989, at 7:23:30 p.m. EST; it landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, on November 27, 1989, at 7:30:16 p.m. EST.
Discovery in orbit; in-flight photography on this Department of Defense (DoD) support mission is limited.
Back row: Sonny Carter and John E. Blaha Front row: Kathryn C. Thornton, Frederick D. Gregory, Story MusgraveSpace Shuttle program← STS-34 (31)STS-32 (33) →
Launch of STS-33
The shuttle's wing and Earth's horizon