Space Transportation and Astronomy Guide

For hundreds of years, people looked up at the night sky and wondered about what they saw. But it wasn’t until the 1960s that people could actually go up into space and get a closer look, thanks to the development of spacecraft. Once the space shuttle was invented, we had a way to send people up into space just like we can put people on airplanes and send them across the country. Being able to go into space on space shuttles has helped people to learn a lot about what’s out there beyond our planet.

What Is a Space Shuttle?

A space shuttle is a reusable spacecraft. Before the space shuttle was invented, spacecraft could only be used once. But the space shuttle, developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), could be launched multiple times, taking astronauts and equipment into space and then bringing them back to Earth. Not every part of the shuttle could be reused, though. The orbiter, the main part that looks kind of like an airplane was reusable, but each shuttle also had an external fuel tank and two rocket boosters. These parts were used to help the shuttle blast off and would then detach and fall off. The rocket boosters could be recovered and fixed up to use again, but the fuel tank would burn up when it fell through the atmosphere.

• All About Space Shuttles
• NASA’s Space Shuttle Program at a Glance
• How Space Shuttles Work
• Space Shuttle Program History
• Space Shuttle Parts and Background Info

What Is the Difference Between a Space Shuttle and a Spaceship?

While “spaceship” is a broad term that can refer to any vehicle designed for space travel, a space shuttle is specifically the partially reusable spacecraft developed by NASA. Spaceships can also be lots of other types of space vehicles, like the capsule that first took humans to the moon and spacecraft built by other countries and businesses.

• Space Shuttle Launches: Information and Photos
• Space Shuttle Program Facts and Timeline
• Spacecraft vs. Space Shuttle
• Inside the Space Shuttle
• Powering the Space Shuttle
• IBM and Space Shuttle Support

What Is the Purpose of a Space Shuttle?

The primary purpose of a space shuttle was to make it easier and more affordable for people to go into space. A shuttle could be used to transport really big things, like satellites and pieces of a space station, into orbit. It could also carry people up into space to fix satellites, work on a space station, or do science experiments in orbit. Without space shuttles, we wouldn’t have been able to build the International Space Station, where astronauts can live and do scientific research. Shuttles also launched powerful telescopes like the Hubble Space Telescope, which astronomers have used to learn more about the universe.

• The Dawn of the Space Shuttle Program
• Astronomy From the Space Shuttle
• Space Shuttle Mission Information, Including Photos
• Hubble Space Telescope, Visitor-Free for 15 Years
• Scientific Uses for Space Shuttles
• Lessons From the Space Shuttle

What Are Some of the Firsts and Notable Accomplishments of NASA’s Space Shuttle Fleet?

NASA launched five space shuttles, and all of them made history in different ways over the course of 135 completed missions. The space shuttle program also helped different countries to work together, like when NASA and the European Space Agency cooperated on the Spacelab missions, which carried a science lab into space and brought it back inside the shuttle.

The first shuttle, Columbia, launched on April 12, 1981, marking the first time a reusable spacecraft orbited Earth and returned safely. The shuttle completed 28 missions before disintegrating upon re-entry on Feb. 1, 2003, during the STS-107 mission, resulting in the loss of all seven crew members.

Challenger was the second shuttle to go into space, and it first launched on April 4, 1983. It was known for missions such as the first spacewalk of the shuttle program. It also carried the first female astronaut, Sally Ride, into space. Tragically, on Jan. 28, 1986, Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight on the STS-51-L mission, resulting in the deaths of all seven crew members.

Discovery became the workhorse of the fleet, flying 39 missions, more than any other shuttle. It is known for launching the Hubble Space Telescope in April 1990. Discovery also returned the United States to space flight following both the Challenger and Columbia disasters.

Atlantis was first launched on Oct. 3, 1985, and is famous for several key missions, including the launch of the Magellan probe to Venus and the Galileo probe to Jupiter in 1989. Atlantis was also the last space shuttle to fly, ending the space shuttle program in July 2011.

Built to replace Challenger, Endeavour first flew in 1992 and completed 25 missions. It was the shuttle that serviced the Hubble Space Telescope on its first repair mission in 1993.

• NASA’s Space Shuttle Missions and History
• Columbia (OV-102)
• Challenger (OV-099)
• Discovery (OV-103)
• Atlantis (OV-104)
• Endeavour (OV-105)
• The History of the Reusable Spacecraft
• Space Shuttles Brought Payoffs to Earth
• Space Shuttles: The World’s First Reusable Spacecraft
• Columbia Ushers in a New Era of Spaceflight
• Columbia’s Final Mission
• Discovery’s First Flight Led to Historic Achievements
• On a Mission With Space Shuttle Atlantis
• The Challenger Crew and the First Teacher in Space
• Where Is the Space Shuttle Endeavour?

Are Space Shuttles Still Used Today?

Space shuttles are no longer used by NASA. The space shuttle program ended in 2011 after 30 years of operation. The decision to retire NASA’s space shuttle fleet was driven by its high costs, safety concerns following the Challenger and Columbia disasters, and the agency’s shift in focus toward deep space exploration, which requires different types of vehicles. Space shuttles were replaced by a new generation of spacecraft designed to carry astronauts into space. But while the shuttles aren’t used anymore, they made a lot of today’s scientific advances possible.

• Why Did NASA Retire the Space Shuttle?
• The End of the Space Shuttle Era
• The 30-Year Legacy of NASA’s Remarkable Spacecraft: The Space Shuttles
• Space Shuttle Facts for Kids
• More Space Shuttle Facts

This page was last updated by Marc Gregory