NAMES OF THE SPACE SHUTTLES

space shuttles

A rocket-launched spacecraft, able to land like an unpowered aircraft, used to make repeated journeys between the earth and earth orbit
The Space Shuttle, part of the Space Transportation System (STS), is an American spacecraft operated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for orbital human spaceflight missions.
(space shuttle) a reusable spacecraft with wings for a controlled descent through the Earth’s atmosphere
(Space Shuttle (pinball)) Space Shuttle was a space themed pinball machine made in 1984 by WMS Industries. The table sold 7,000 units. The concept of the game was done by Joe Kaminkow. The designers were Barry Oursler and Joe Kaminkow.

of the

biggest consumers of energy in homes and buildings, which are heating

names

(name) a language unit by which a person or thing is known; “his name really is George Washington”; “those are two names for the same thing”
(name) assign a specified (usually proper) proper name to; “They named their son David”; “The new school was named after the famous Civil Rights leader”
A famous person
name calling: verbal abuse; a crude substitute for argument; “sticks and stones may break my bones but names can never hurt me”
Someone or something regarded as existing merely as a word and lacking substance or reality
A word or set of words by which a person, animal, place, or thing is known, addressed, or referred to

Space Shuttle

The Space Shuttle Enterprise (NASA Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-101) was the first Space Shuttle orbiter. It was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform test flights in the atmosphere. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield, and was therefore not capable of spaceflight.

Originally, Enterprise had been intended to be refitted for orbital flight, which would have made it the second space shuttle to fly after Columbia. However, during the construction of Columbia, details of the final design changed, particularly with regard to the weight of the fuselage and wings. Refitting Enterprise for spaceflight would have involved dismantling the orbiter and returning the sections to subcontractors across the country. As this was an expensive proposition, it was determined to be less costly to build Challenger around a body frame (STA-099) that had been created as a test article. Similarly, Enterprise was considered for refit to replace Challenger after the latter was destroyed, but Endeavour was built from structural spares instead.

Construction began on the first orbiter on June 4, 1974. Designated OV-101, it was originally planned to be named Constitution. However, a write-in campaign caused it to be renamed after the Starship Enterprise, featured on the television show Star Trek.

The design of OV-101 was not the same as that planned for OV-102, the first flight model; the tail was constructed differently, and it did not have the interfaces to mount OMS pods. A large number of subsystems—ranging from main engines to radar equipment—were not installed on this vehicle, but the capacity to add them in the future was retained. Instead of a Thermal Protection System, its surface was primarily fiberglass.

In mid-1976, the orbiter was used for ground vibration tests, allowing engineers to compare data from an actual flight vehicle with theoretical models.

On September 17, 1976, Enterprise was rolled out of Rockwell’s plant at Palmdale, California. In recognition of its fictional namesake, Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and most of the principal cast of the original series of Star Trek were on hand at the dedication ceremony.

On January 31, 1977, it was taken by road to Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, to begin operational testing.

While at NASA Dryden, Enterprise was used by NASA for a variety of ground and flight tests intended to validate aspects of the shuttle program. The initial nine-month testing period was referred to by the acronym ALT, for "Approach and Landing Test". These tests included a maiden "flight" on February 18, 1977 atop a Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) to measure structural loads and ground handling and braking characteristics of the mated system. Ground tests of all orbiter subsystems were carried out to verify functionality prior to atmospheric flight.

The mated Enterprise/SCA combination was then subjected to five test flights with Enterprise unmanned and unactivated. The purpose of these test flights was to measure the flight characteristics of the mated combination. These tests were followed with three test flights with Enterprise manned to test the shuttle flight control systems.

Finally, Enterprise underwent five free flights where the craft separated from the SCA and was landed under astronaut control. These tests verified the flight characteristics of the orbiter design and were carried out under several aerodynamic and weight configurations.

On August 12, 1977, the space shuttle Enterprise flew on its own for the first time

Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center Virginia

Space shuttle Atlantis, at Kennedy Space Center, from Haulover Canal jetty, Mosquito Lagoon, Canaveral National Seashore, Brevard County, Florida 9

Watching Space shuttle launches is not really my thing but when my friend Paul Aughey set the trip up, how could I pass on going to Florida. The day before the launch, they predicted a 30% chance of a successful launch because of a tropical weather system passing through the area. Paul found a viewing access about seven miles to the north in Mosquito Lagoon (appropriately named I might add). Hundreds if not thousands of fellow kayakers and canoers lined the channel under the watchful eye of the U.S. Coast Guard. I have to admit I got kinda teary-eyed when the thing took off. I think the coolest thing was about 90 seconds after it took off this incredible thunderous roar reached us. It sounded and vibrated like heavy thunder but it lasted for minutes. It was amazing. Too bad my longest lens was on a 300 mm.