Description: This highly detailed embroidered patch commemorates STS-38, the seventh dedicated flight for the United States Department of Defense utilizing the Space Shuttle Atlantis (OV-104). Launched under the cover of night on November 15, 1990, this classified multi-day mission was commanded by Richard O. Covey and piloted by Frank L. Culbertson Jr., alongside mission specialists Carl J. Meade, Robert C. Springer, and Charles D. "Sam" Gemar. The patch artwork features a striking, stylized presentation of the orbiter splitting a dual-colored starburst, symbolizing the day-and-night commitment to national security operations.
item detail: The patch features premium full embroidery with a tight stitch count and a durable royal blue merrowed border. The central graphic showcases a head-on view of the shuttle orbiter superimposed over a multi-layered starburst, split horizontally with a brilliant orange-and-yellow upper gradient and a muted monochrome grey-and-white lower gradient. The outer border cleanly displays the surnames of the entire crew: Covey, Culbertson, Meade, Springer, Gemar, finished with a standard fabric backing that matches the official crew insignia.
Collectibility: Because STS-38 was a classified military operation for the Department of Defense, merchandise and official crew-style patches from this flight hold elevated historical interest for aerospace historians and military insignia enthusiasts. High-quality, unapplied patches from this closing era of late-Cold War military shuttle operations are premiere additions for collectors completing an authentic fleet timeline of Atlantis.
The Mirror of STS-29: If the artwork looks familiar, it is because it is a direct design sibling to the STS-29 patch flown a year prior. Astronaut Robert Springer flew on both missions and helped design both badges. While STS-29 utilized a fully geometric 8-pointed starburst, the STS-38 emblem evolved into an intensive, multi-layered ray pattern to simulate a fiery engine plume transforming into a stealthy shadow.
The Secret Payload Revealed: While NASA and the Department of Defense strictly refused to comment on the cargo at the time, amateur satellite trackers and declassified documents later revealed that Atlantis deployed USA-67. This was a highly classified, sophisticated geostationary signals intelligence satellite designed to intercept military communications.
The Transatlantic Weather Trap: The launch was famously delayed for months due to an extraordinary series of structural and payload issues, but its landing also made history. Due to dynamic, un-flyable crosswinds at Edwards Air Force Base in California, Atlantis was forced to make a rare detour and land directly at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the first time a shuttle mission ended there since 1985.
A Future Commander's Debut: This flight marked the very first journey into space for Pilot Frank Culbertson. He would go on to have an illustrious career at NASA, later serving as the Commander of the International Space Station (Expedition 3) during the tragic events of September 11, 2001.
The Split Horizon Meaning: The drastic split between the fiery orange top half and the stark grey bottom half of the central graphic was explicitly requested by the crew. It was designed to visually represent the continuous, 24-hour vigilance of the Department of Defense, showcasing a vehicle operating seamlessly across both the sunlit and shadowed sides of the Earth.