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Towards the end of the Apollo program, NASA officials were already thinking about what

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would be next for the American space program.

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At that time, the rockets used to place astronauts and equipment into space were designed to

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be used only once.

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Although effective, NASA planners decided that they needed a system that was less expensive,

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reliable, and perhaps most of all, reusable.

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The idea of a reusable space shuttle that could launch like a rocket and land like an

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airplane was appealing and would soon change the way astronauts were traveling into space.

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The space shuttle was born on January 5, 1972, when President Richard Nixon authorized the

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development of reusable vehicles for space exploration.

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The project became known officially as the Space Transportation System, or STS.

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It was based on a piloted spacecraft boosted into orbit by a reusable launch vehicle that

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could return to Earth like an airplane, ready to be used again on short notice.

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This new vehicle consisted of three primary elements, a delta-winged orbiter spacecraft,

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two solid rocket boosters, and one external fuel tank.

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Over a ten-year span, five orbiters were built, including the test vehicle named Enterprise

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and the four space orbiters Columbia, Discovery, Atlantis, and Challenger.

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On April 12, 1981, after years of testing and construction, the first shuttle, Columbia,

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reached orbit piloted by astronauts John Young and Robert Crippen.

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The first four shuttle flights were collectively called the Orbital Flight Test Program and

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demonstrated how the spacecraft performed under real spaceflight conditions.

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During these first four flights, NASA tested the shuttle as a launch vehicle, habitat for

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crew members, freight handler, instrument platform, and aircraft.

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After the fourth landing, NASA declared the shuttle ready for operation.

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Since that time, the shuttle program has performed well over 100 missions and has accomplished

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a number of monumental achievements.

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In June 1983, Sally Ride became the first American woman in space.

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The shuttle launched the Magellan spacecraft to Venus, the Galileo spacecraft to Jupiter,

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and the Ulysses spacecraft to study the sun.

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The shuttle also has deployed the Hubble Space Telescope, the Gamma Ray Observatory,

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and the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite.

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Another key milestone came in 1998 when astronaut John Glenn, the first American to orbit the

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Earth, returned as the oldest man ever to reach space as a member of the crew of Discovery

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on a nine-day mission.

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The shuttle has also been instrumental in constructing and outfitting the International

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Space Station while also being used to carry large payloads to and from orbit and perform

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servicing missions on satellites.

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The design, now approaching its third decade, is still state-of-the-art in many areas, including

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computerized flight control, airframe design, electrical power systems, thermal protection

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systems, and main engines.

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Even though the sophisticated shuttle program suffered the devastating losses of the Columbia

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and the Challenger, its successful missions have made great strides in space travel and

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exploration during its short history.

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More than 100 documented NASA technologies from the space shuttle are now incorporated

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into the tools we use, the foods we eat, and the biotechnology and medicines used to improve

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health.

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Although plans are now in the works to retire the fleet, the space shuttle program will

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forever hold a special place in the history of space travel, not only for its unique design,

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but for the history and technologies it brought to all of us.

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The space shuttle has been one of the most valuable and important tools in our quest

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to increase our understanding of space.

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It is scheduled to go out of service in the near future, being replaced by the new Crew

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Exploration Vehicle.

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Up next, we'll find out exactly how sonic booms work, but first...

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Did you know Enterprise, the first space shuttle test vehicle, was originally to be named Constitution

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in honor of the U.S. Constitution's Bicentennial?

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However, viewers of the popular TV science fiction show Star Trek started a write-in

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campaign urging the White House to change the name to Enterprise.

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Designated OV-101, the newly named Enterprise was rolled out of the assembly facility on

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September 17, 1976 to begin its work as a flying test bed.

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Although it never flew in space, the Enterprise flew eight captive flights attached to the

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747 shuttle carrier and five free flights that landed at Edwards Air Force Base.

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The Enterprise was enormously successful helping test and prove technologies that would be

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needed in future space shuttles.

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In November 2003, Enterprise was moved to the Smithsonian's Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center

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near Washington Dulles Airport, where it is now on permanent public display.