Space shuttle's last launch

The NASA space shuttle is being retired after 30 years of service

After 30 years and 134 mission, NASA's space shuttle fleet is being retired for good. Up to one million people gathered around the Kennedy Space Centre to watch Atlantis take to the skies. Once the mission is over, the retired fleet will be put on display at institutions around the US to inspire the next generation of space explorers and engineers.

The space shuttle, officially called the Space Transportation System (STS) was the first orbital spacecraft specifically designed to be reused. The first shuttle, Columbia, was launched on 12 April 1981. The mission verified the combined performance of the orbiter vehicle (OV), its twin solid rocket boosters (SRBs), giant external fuel tank (ET) and three space shuttle main engines (SSMEs). It also put to the test the teams that manufactured, processed, launched and managed the unique vehicle system, which consists of about 2.5 million moving parts.

The orbiter, most commonly referred to as the space shuttle, was the only part of the shuttle “stack” that made the trek into orbit. Its boosters were jettisoned into the Atlantic Ocean, retrieved and reused. The external tank was the only part of the stack not used again. Instead, it re-entered the atmosphere about nine minutes after launch and burned up over the Pacific Ocean.

When returning to earth the space shuttle did not land under parachutes as NASA’s Apollo capsules that preceded it. Instead, it returned by gliding back on a pair of wings to a runway on land.

The space shuttle's 60-foot-long payload bay and a robotic arm could carry several satellites into low Earth orbit on a single flight. The shuttle fleet, which was designed to reach orbits ranging from about 115 to 400 miles high, also routinely carried whole laboratories into orbit for unique experiments. It also was called on to build the International Space Station (ISS), which was assembled in orbit.

Technical specifications

• Length of Space Shuttle: 184 feet
• Length of Orbiter: 122 feet
• Height of Orbiter on runway: 57 feet
• Wingspan: 78 feet
• Gross lift-off weight - varies depending on payload and consumables: 4.5 million pounds
• Velocity: 17,500 mph
• Payload bay length: 60 feet
• Payload diameter: 15 feet
• Thrust, solid rocket booster: 2.9 million pounds

Shuttle disasters

• On 28 January 1986, Challenger was destroyed 73 seconds after the launch due to the failure of the right SRB. All seven members of the crew died. Space shuttle Endeavour was later constructed to replace Challenger.
• On 1 February 2003, Columbia space shuttle disintegrated during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere due to damage on the wing caused during the launch. All seven members of the crew died.

10 space shuttle facts

• Five shuttles made up the fleet: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour 
• Each space shuttle was named after influential ships of science and exploration
• There have been 135 shuttle flights in total
• The five shuttles have orbited the earth 20,952 times and travelled 537,114,016 miles
• 848 astronauts have been among the shuttle crew
• The shuttles and crew have spent 1,320 days, 1 hour, 32 minutes and 44 seconds in space
• The longest mission was completed by Columbia - 17 days, 15 hours, 53 minutes and 18 seconds
• 306 men and 49 women have flown aboard NASA's space shuttles
• The youngest person to travel in space was 28 and the eldest was 77
• The only astronaut to have flown on all five shuttles is Story Musgrave