STS-72 (Space Shuttle Endeavour)

STS-72 was a Space Shuttle Endeavour mission flown January 11-20, 1996, operated by NASA. Its primary science payload was the Shuttle Laser Altimeter 1 (SLA-01), a 1064 nm pulsed laser altimeter designed to measure surface elevation and vegetation canopy structure from orbit. SLA-01 was a pathfinder for space-based laser altimetry within a planned multi-flight SLA series.^[1][2] The mission flew at 28.45 degrees inclination. Orbit altitude is recorded as 296 km in mission records^[1]; NASA mission documentation lists 250 nautical miles (approximately 463 km),^[3] with the discrepancy unresolved against primary ephemeris data.