Space Shuttle Concepts, Photo Courtesy NASA The name “Space Shuttle” subsequently became a permanent fixture for the vehicle, which NASA agreed should incorporate a fully re-usable, two-stage design. The name “Space Shuttle” first appeared in the “purpose” section of an official invitation for production contract bids issued on February 18, 1970. Early in 1970, NASA refined their technical requirements for the vehicle. They unanimously recommended a fully re-usable, two-stage vehicle. These companies presented reports to NASA by November 1, 1969. Invitations were given to four aerospace contractors to present design proposals on re-usable and partially re-usable manned spacecraft. On January 31, 1969, NASA issued feasibility design study contracts for their “Integrated Launch and Re-entry Vehicle” (ILRV). Of course, history would prove otherwise. The words “cheap” and “routine” were the words which most closely matched the objectives for Space Shuttles as expressed by NASA. In addition, NASA believed that Space Shuttles could serve as multi-purpose satellite delivery vehicles with the potential to completely replace Atlas-Centaur, Delta and Titan rockets.
NASA SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH 2011 PLUS
The space station would support a plethora of scientific research objectives, plus act as an engineering and support base for manned journeys to the planets. presence in space following the Apollo lunar landings. The space station was intended to assure a permanent manned U.S. At the time, NASA envisioned a space station which would be staffed by 12 to 24 people. The first goal of the Space Shuttle program was to provide NASA with an efficient, re-usable method of carrying astronauts to and from a permanently manned space station. Space Shuttle Artist Conception, Photo Courtesy NASAīorn in 1968 at the height of the Apollo program, the Space Shuttle was designed to fulfill two basic roles in NASA post-Apollo manned flight objectives. “There’s still a lot of work in front of us,” said Gerstenmaier, “but what a great start to the mission today.By Cliff Lethbridge SPACE SHUTTLE PROGRAM HISTORY Astronauts Ron Garan and Mike Fossum, who flew to the ISS in April and June, respectively, aboard Russian Soyuz spacecraft, will perform a spacewalk during Atlantis’ visit.Ītlantis is scheduled to return home to Kennedy Space Center and land on the morning of July 20 - the 42nd anniversary of the day Neil Armstrong first walked on the moon - but officials are considering whether to extend the mission an extra day.
The astronauts also will perform experiments and bring back some cargo, most notably an ammonia pump that recently failed on the space station. The group had logged more than 537 million miles heading into the final flight, which is scheduled to last 12 days.Ītlantis will dock at the International Space Station on Sunday, with its primary mission the delivery of the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module - a collection of supplies and spare parts that will help sustain ISS operations once the shuttle program ends. More than 30 years of shuttle missions have seen 355 astronauts representing 16 different countries take flight.Ītlantis is making its 33rd flight, second only to Discovery’s 39 among the five shuttles. Magnus has logged the most space time on the crew, including a 4½-month stay on the International Space Station from November 2008 through March 2009. The mission designated STS-135 will be the second trip to space for Hurley and the third for Ferguson, Magnus and Walheim. You may think I’m talking about the hardware, but I’m really talking about the teams and the people that supported the launch that just occurred.” “We got to witness something really, really special and something really amazing. “What a truly awesome day today,” said Bill Gerstenmaier, director of NASA’s manned space operations. Space center workers later gathered in the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building, where all the shuttle’s components are put in place, to toast the launch. Reaching speeds of 17,500 mph, it headed for orbit and a rendezvous with the International Space Station.Ĭheers rang out at Kennedy Space Center as a crowd that featured former astronauts, family members of the current shuttle crew and thousands of employees who have done the detail work and heavy lifting that keep the shuttles flying celebrated a bittersweet moment.
NASA SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH 2011 FREE
and the astronauts were left to recline on their backs for more than two hours as they and their support staff performed final checks of every system in the shuttle.įinally, with the familiar roar of engines accompanied by billowing smoke, Atlantis lifted free of Launch Pad 39A. The close-out crew sealed Atlantis’ hatch at 9:21 a.m. Commander Chris Ferguson, pilot Doug Hurley and mission specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim donned their flight suits shortly after 7 a.m.
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