11/21/2023 0 Comments Space shuttle enterprise launch date![]() ![]() The shuttle used Spacelab to host missions devoted to studying how humans, animals, and cells react to microgravity and how they acclimate to Earth’s gravity when they return to the ground. Although the International Space Station was being constructed at the time, the Atlantis, Discovery, and Endeavor spacecraft were responsible for its assembly, and Columbia never made a trip to the station. The catastrophic event prompted NASA to suspend all space shuttle flights until September 1988.Ĭolumbia returned to flight August 8, 1989, and proceeded to spend over a decade conducting space-based scientific research. On January 28, 1986, structural malfunctions and cold temperatures at the Kennedy Space Center caused the Challenger space shuttle to explode only 73 seconds after liftoff, killing all seven crewmembers. Unfortunately, the following mission in NASA’s Space Shuttle Program ended in tragedy. The mission also carried out numerous experiments on the human body’s reaction to microgravity, including the Initial Blood Storage Experiment, which showed that blood platelets stored at microgravity retain more structural and functional integrity than those stored on Earth. The crystals’ purity turned out to be far superior to proteins on Earth, which allowed researchers to get a clearer, more in-depth look at their structure. However, the crew moved forward with their other planned experiments, including creating the first space-grown protein crystals. Columbia made its return to space January 12, 1986, for a six-day mission that intended to photograph Halley’s Comet from space with a 35mm camera, but issues with the camera’s batteries doomed the project. Its next two years were spent undergoing modifications while the Challenger, Discovery, and Atlantis spacecraft conducted missions and research. Together, they conducted 73 investigations involving atmospheric science, observations of Earth, astronomy, physics, and more on this single flight alone. The first mission equipped with Spacelab launched November 28, 1983, with NASA and European Space Agency astronauts teaming up for their first dual shuttle mission. After this mission, Columbia remained Earth-bound for about a year to complete the construction of Spacelab - a reusable science lab designed to conduct space-based experiments. After successful demonstration, the craft embarked on its first operational mission November 11, 1982, where it deployed two commercial communication satellites into geosynchronous orbit. Columbia launched into orbit on Apexactly 20 years after Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit Earth.Ĭolumbia went on to complete three more proof-of-concept missions in 19 to ensure shuttle performance, reusability, and firmly establish its ability to launch and land safely. By the time April 1981 arrived, the craft was issue-free and ready for liftoff. However, due to issues with its thermal protection system and main engines, the launch was delayed for nearly a year and a half. After years of construction, Columbia was sent to the Kennedy Space Center on March 25, 1979, with a preliminary launch date planned for late 1979. Its innovative design had begun as the Space Shuttle Program’s prototype Enterprise, which wasn’t able to conduct space missions due to its lack of engines and heat shields. ship to circle the globe, began at Rockwell International’s main assembly facility in Palmdale, California, in 1975. But it goes without saying that creating such a craft wasn’t a quick and easy task.Ĭonstruction on Columbia, which was named after the first U.S. The achievement showed that the unconventional craft - a winged vessel that underwent a rocket-like launch and a glider-like landing - contained both groundbreaking design and high functionality. The duo spent 54 hours piloting the craft, completing 36 orbits around Earth before successfully landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California on April 14. The first-of-its-kind space flight was commanded by John Young, an astronaut whose experience included four previous trips to space and a walk on the Moon in 1972, and piloted by Robert Crippen, who went on to command three future space shuttle missions. The famous shuttle not only laid the groundwork for the success of NASA’s 30-year-long Space Shuttle Program, but also conducted invaluable space-based research during its 22-year journey. On April 12, 1981, the space shuttle Columbia successfully launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and became the first reusable spacecraft to orbit Earth. Today marks the 37th anniversary of a launch that forever changed space travel. ![]()
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