Knowra Space Shuttle Space Shuttle NASA’s reusable crewed spacecraft system flew 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. Its orbiters launched with an external tank and two solid rocket boosters, then landed like gliders.
Space Shuttle Orbiter : The winged spacecraft that carried the shuttle crew and payloads into orbit and returned to Earth. It housed the crew, cargo bay, engines, and flight systems throughout each mission.
Spacelab : A reusable laboratory module carried in the shuttle cargo bay for research in microgravity. Shuttle missions carried Spacelab modules and crews for experiments across multiple disciplines.
Space Task Group Report : A 1969 NASA planning report that proposed a broad, phased program for human spaceflight after Apollo. Its recommendations helped frame the post-Apollo debate that led to the shuttle program.
Challenger disaster : The 1986 Space Shuttle accident in which Challenger broke apart shortly after launch, killing all seven crew members. The disaster exposed failures in engineering judgment and launch decision-making.
Apollo spacecraft : NASA’s crewed spacecraft that carried astronauts to the Moon and returned them to Earth from 1968 to 1975. Apollo used expendable launch hardware and a capsule, unlike the shuttle’s reusable winged orbiter.
Space Shuttle External Tank : The large tank that supplied propellant to the shuttle orbiter’s main engines during launch. It fed the orbiter’s engines and was discarded after the ascent to orbit.
Canadarm : The robotic arm developed for the shuttle to deploy, retrieve, and manipulate payloads in space. Crews used it to handle satellites and assemble large structures beyond the cargo bay.
Reusable launch vehicle : A launch vehicle designed to recover and reuse some or all of its major components. The shuttle was built around reuse, though its external tank was discarded on every flight.
Columbia disaster : The 2003 Space Shuttle accident in which Columbia broke apart during reentry, killing all seven crew members. The loss revealed how launch debris damage could threaten an orbiter far from Earth.
Soyuz spacecraft : A Russian crewed spacecraft family that has carried people to orbit since 1967. Soyuz shows the compact capsule approach that continued crew transport while the shuttle was grounded or retired.
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