Space Shuttle

Yes. Just like most modern airplanes of any size, nose wheel steering is used on the ground.

Early missions landed at Edwards AFB on a circular dry lakebed. Circular meant that all landings could be directly into the wind no matter where the wind came from that day.

After the landing at Edwards, the shuttles were lifted on top of a 747 and flown piggyback to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This is complex and expensive!

Once it looked like the shuttles were out of their test flight period and able to use a regular runway, they landed at Kennedy's runway. But the steering was too limited for a cross wind landing. This lead to a huge amount of tire damage the first time it happened. Shuttles were grounded.

The nose wheel steering was redesigned to allow for greater deflection. Problem was solved - landings became routine at Kennedy.

The steering wheel in a large plane is called a tiller - it's small, usually off to one side, and not connected to the flight controls.

The Space Shuttle uses fuel cells to produce electricity. The hydrogen (H2) is burned with the oxygen (O2) to produce clean water (H2O). The heat is used to produce the electricity. The fresh water is then used by the crew or transfered to the International Space Station for drinking and showering. The Apollo Service Modules used a similar system for power and water.

That all depends on what direction you headed out.

Here are a few of the places you could be:

-- 1/4th of the way to Venus ... if Venus happened to be the closest to earth that it can ever be

-- 1/8th of the way to Mars ... if Mars happened to be the closest to earth that it can ever be

-- 1/15th of the way to the sun

-- 0.0000000017 of the way to Pluto

-- 0.00000000000023 of the way to the nearest star

There were seven astronauts onboard the space shuttle Challenger when it tragically exploded shortly after its launch on January 28, 1986.

The two main types of rocket engines are Solid fuel rocket engines and Liquid fuel rocket engines.

The Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) also known as the RS-24 engines are liquid fueled reusable engines made by Rocketdyne and burn liquid hydrogen as their fuel and liquid oxygen as the oxidiser. The shuttle has three engines. The fuel is stored in the large orange External Tank strapped to the shuttle's belly.

On the way to orbit, the shuttle also uses two reusable solid rocket boosters (SRBs) which provide about 83% of the takeoff thrust. These use a solid fuel containing aluminum (the fuel), ammonium perchlorate (the oxidiser), iron oxide (a catalyst), and the mixture is held together with an epoxy and a binder (which also acts as fuel).

While in space, the shuttle uses the reaction control system (RCS) thrusters which are seen on various places on the shuttle orbiter, and two orbital manoeuvering system (OMS) engines. The RCS and OMS use monomethyl hydrazine as the fuel and nitrogen tetroxide as the oxidiser.

Yes, the first woman in space was Valentina Tereshkova.

There are technically four, but only three are spaceworthy:

OV-103 aka Discovery

OV-104 aka Atlantis

OV-105 aka Endeavour

OV-101 aka Enterprise exists but is a non-flying shuttle. It was built as a demonstrator but was never built to fly in space although in theory it could have been dismantled and made spaceworthy -- a very expensive proposition.

Yuri Gagarin was 1.57 metres tall. Translated to feet, he was 5'1 - 5'2. His height actually was an advantage due to the size of his spacecraft.

This would be OV-102 more popularly known as Columbia. It was the first Space Shuttle to fly to space.

It lived a full career before the tragedy which led to its destruction at the end of STS-107 on 1-February 2003, which would have been its 28th mission.

3 main liquid fuel engines, 2 solid-stage rocket boosters, and 25 compressed gas thrusters for maneuvering.

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Ceramic tiles on a space shuttle are heat-resistant, lightweight, durable, and provide thermal protection during re-entry. They are designed to withstand extreme temperatures experienced during re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere to protect the shuttle and its crew.

Space shuttles exit and enter space from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. They are launched into space from the launch pad using powerful rocket boosters. Upon reentry, the space shuttle glides back to Earth and lands on a runway like an airplane.

The Voyager 1 and 2 space probes both carried gold records with recordings of various sounds, including music and greetings, and numerous images from Earth and other information was inscribed on the cover.

A space probe is an unmanned spacecraft designed to explore the solar system and transmit data back to earth.

A satellite is an object that orbits around a planet.


By these definitions the space shuttle is not a space probe and is only sometimes a satellite. It is considered a satellite only when it is in orbit around Earth.


However, the space shuttle is not usually referred to as a 'satellite' no matter if it is in orbit or not. Normally it is called a 'launch vehicle.'

The space shuttle revolutionized space travel by being the first reusable spacecraft, enabling cost-effective access to space. It also enabled the construction and maintenance of the International Space Station, advancing human presence in space. However, with its retirement in 2011, space travel has shifted towards new spacecraft designs and technologies.

As the space shuttle re-enters Earth's atmosphere, it uses its shape and heat shield to create aerodynamic lift, which counteracts the force of gravity pulling it down. It also utilizes thrusters and control surfaces to maintain a controlled descent trajectory. Additionally, the shuttle's velocity and angle of approach are carefully calculated to reduce the effects of gravity during re-entry.

The Challenger (l986) and the Columbia (2003) disasters. Both had mixed gender crews and were all-hands disasters- no survivors. These were the only underway accidents in the Space Shuttle program- one occuring in the ascent phase- rocket booster exploded- and the other in the Descent or re-entry phase. Some would argue, strictly speaking , neither happened in interplanetary or even orbital space ! still, they happened. the Apollo l fire incident involving the deaths of three astronauts- happened on the ground during as systems test of life-support geat- again not actual flight- here it happened on the ground.

STS-113, the Endeavour mission, was significant for several reasons. It marked the installation of the P1 truss segment on the International Space Station, increasing the station's power generation capabilities. The mission also saw the crew perform three spacewalks to complete assembly tasks and conduct maintenance on the station. Additionally, the mission included the crew exchange of Expedition 6 and Expedition 5 members, ensuring continuous human presence on the ISS.

The space shuttle travels in the Earth's orbit, typically at an altitude of around 250 miles above the Earth's surface. It orbits the Earth at a speed of approximately 17,500 miles per hour, allowing it to counteract the pull of gravity and remain in orbit.

The Space Shuttle Challenger was destroy on January 28th 1986 on Launching Complex 39 Pad B at the Kennedy Space Center. It was 73 second after lift off that killed all seven crew members that including a teacher

The Space Shuttle Columbia was the very first Space Shuttle that was launch on April 12th 1981 at the Kennedy Space Center. At that time the crew of the first shuttle launch was only two crewmembers (Commnader John Young & Pilot Robert Crippen)

Space shuttle travel revolutionized space travel by providing a reusable spacecraft that could carry astronauts and cargo to space, then return to Earth for refurbishment and reuse. This reusability significantly lowered the cost of space missions and made it more accessible. The shuttle also facilitated the construction of the International Space Station and enabled crucial scientific research and technological advancements in space exploration.