Space Shuttle

in a nutshell, the earlier space missions were to break the barrier of what we didnt know about space in general. sputnik, Apollo, Gemini, etc. they were all the 'first to be' if you will. space walks, landing on the moon, proving the u.s. could be the Russians to the moon, etc. nowadays, its more of branching off to what we already know. but, mainly to put satellites in orbit, getting better pictures of dopplar radar, mars, clusters, further images of space, hence the hubble. but again, the difference of today as opposed to then is less "pushing the envelope" and more of enhancing and branching off into tangets of what we already pushed prior!

The space shuttle is a reusable spacecraft that can launch like a rocket but can also land like an airplane. Rockets are typically one-time use vehicles that are not designed to return to Earth intact. Additionally, the space shuttle can carry astronauts and cargo to space, whereas rockets are mainly used for payload delivery.

A single shuttle usually uses over a million pounds of solid propellant. This is the propellant that can be used to exit the atmosphere, while the 500,000 gallons of liquid fuel are used outside of the atmosphere.

In rockets, we experience weightlessness or float because we are in a state of free fall towards Earth. The rocket and everything inside are falling at the same rate due to gravity, creating the sensation of weightlessness.

Russia or any other country has not sent any dogs to the moon. All the dogs sent into space by Russia have been to earth orbit only. Laika, the first dog in space, was a mongrel but said to be mostly Siberian Husky.

The first winged spacecraft was the Space Shuttle, developed and operated by NASA. The Space Shuttle made its first orbital flight in 1981 and was used for various missions, including transporting astronauts to and from the International Space Station.

Mae Jemison was born in Decatur, Alabama on October 17, 1956. She was the youngest of three children.

Space shuttles work by utilizing three major components to reach their destination. There are two rocket boosters that are critical for the launch itself and the external fuel tank that carries enough fuel for the launch. The orbiter is the component that carries the astronauts and payload. The boosters are ignited to launch the shuttle and separate shortly after launch. When the orbiter reaches its optimum height, the external fuel tanks separate. The orbiter is then set for the orbital path it will follow around the earth. When the orbiter is ready to return to the earth it will use an engine retrofire to leave its orbit and descend to re-enter the earth's atmosphere where it will land.

The only planets you can land on is Earth which we live and Mars because it has an atmosphere, the moon you can land on but no atmosphere. You cannot land on Mercury because its too close to the sun you will burn or freeze to death, you cannot land on Venus because its so hot and has a thick atmosphere and you would last a few minutes before you get crushed. You can't land on the 4 outer planets because they are just gas giants. Pluto is also a gas giant but is not classified as a planet anymore.

The shuttle never has and never will orbit the moon.

Freedom 7 was the name of Alan Shepard's Mercury capsule when he became the First American and the second person to enter space on the 5th May 1961. In January 1971, Shepard returned to space aboard the Kitty Hawk Apollo 14 spacecraft which took him and his two fellow astronauts to the moon.

Astronauts sleep in sleeping bags that are attached to walls, floors, or ceilings in space capsules or onboard the International Space Station. They may use straps or Velcro to hold themselves in place since there is no gravity to keep them from floating around. Eye masks and earplugs can also help block out light and noise in the microgravity environment.

Eight 3.5 inch thick steel bolts are used as anchors to bolt the shuttle to the launchpad. When the solid rocket boosters ignite, explosive charges shatter the nuts on top of the hold-down posts.

There are currently no active space shuttles. The Space Shuttle program was retired by NASA in 2011 with the final flight of the Space Shuttle Atlantis. NASA now relies on commercial partners like SpaceX for crewed missions to space.

Mae Jemison's ex-husband's name is C. M. O. Jamal. They were married from 1988 to 1993.

The next shuttle to launch is Discovery, flying mission STS-133, and is currently planned to liftoff on 2 November 2010, at 4:18 pm.

The final missions scheduled for the space shuttle program are:

- Endeavor on STS-134, slated for launch 27 February 2011

- Atlantis on STS-135, slated for launch no earlier than 28 June 2011, but funding is pending the passage of an appropriations bill.

There is currently no verifiable evidence or scientific consensus supporting the existence of extraterrestrial beings visiting or residing on Earth. The search for extraterrestrial life continues through initiatives like SETI and missions to other planets, but definitive proof is still lacking.

The mission was called Freedom 7, and Alan Shepard was the only astronaut.

Lanthanum is primarily found in minerals such as bastnäsite and monazite, which are commonly mined in countries like China, Australia, and the United States. It is also found in small quantities in some other minerals and in certain mineral sands. Lanthanum is used in various industries, including electronics and green technologies.

Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavor have visited the ISS.

Challenger (which was destroyed before the beginning of ISS construction) and Enterprise (which was a flight test vehicle and not space-worthy) have visited the International Space Station. Columbia was slated to visit the ISS on STS-118 but was destroyed on reentry and this mission was flown by Endeavour instead.

Skylab was the first US space station, launched in May 1973. It was designed for scientific research and conducted various experiments during its missions in space. Skylab orbited the Earth until 1979 when it re-entered the atmosphere and disintegrated.

During its second flight (STS-2), the space shuttle Columbia lost two thermal protection tiles. These tiles were on the underside of the orbiter and were dislodged during liftoff.

The duration that a shuttle stays in space can vary depending on its mission objectives. Some space shuttles may stay in space for a few days to a couple of weeks, while others, like the International Space Station, can have longer missions lasting several months.