Orbital missions · 1981–2011
NASA's Space Shuttle program flew 135 missions between its first launch on April 12, 1981, and its final landing on July 21, 2011. The system combined a reusable winged orbiter with an external tank and two solid rocket boosters, giving it a very different form from the Apollo launch system.
Shuttle crews deployed and serviced spacecraft, conducted experiments, and helped assemble the International Space Station. The program also suffered the loss of Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003. Its history brings together major technical achievements and the difficult work of understanding and managing the risks of human spaceflight.
What to look for
- A winged orbiter with a large payload bay
- A launch stack including an external tank and two boosters
- An unpowered runway landing at the end of an orbital mission