The first American to orbit Earth returns to orbit aboard Space Shuttle Discovery. During a ten-day mission with the SPACEHAB laboratory module installed in the cargo bay, the crew conducts medical experiments with Mercury astronaut John Glenn, comparing his results against the results of identical experiments performed with one of his crewmates, to determine the effect of weightlessness on older space travelers. At the age of 77, Glenn is the world’s oldest space traveler (and is still a sitting member of the U.S. Senate at the time of his flight). Discovery’s crew on her 25th flight is Commander Curtis Brown, Pilot Steven Lindsey, mission specialists Scott Parazynski, Stephen Robinson and Pedro Duque, and payload specialists Chiaki Mukai and John Glenn.
Pay cable channel Showtime premieres the 
EMI Records releases 
Big Finish Productions 
The 93rd episode of Gene Roddenberry’s Earth: Final Conflict, airs in syndication, starring Jayne Heitmeyer, Von Flores, Melinda Deines, Guylaine St. Onge, and Alan Van Sprang. Kevin Kilner guest stars as William Boone, the series’ first season lead.
Squint releases 
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BBC3 airs the 
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Sparking the biggest outcry since Tom Baker’s departure, actor David Tennant announces that the four special Doctor Who episodes in production for 2009 will be his last in the role, after which he’ll hand off the reins to a new actor. Likewise, Russell T. Davies has already announced that he will give up his position as Doctor Who showrunner to concentrate on non-genre projects, and will be succeeded by multiple-Hugo-winning writer Steven Moffat (who has penned such fan favorites as Blink and The Girl In The Fireplace). Naturally, speculation about the actor who will play the Doctor’s eleventh incarnation runs rampant.
Big Finish Productions 
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Big Finish Productions 
The 50th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Katrina Law (Spartacus) guest stars.
BBC3 premieres the 
Streaming service CBS All Access releases 
The CW airs the 53rd episode of Legends Of Tomorrow, starring Caity Lotz, Matt Ryan, Brandon Routh, and Tala Ashe. Gerard Plunkett (Da Vinci’s Inquest) guest stars.
The CW airs the 117th episode of The Flash, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ superhero starring Grant Gustin. Sendhil Ramamurthy (Heroes) guest stars.