1 Whither the Space Shuttle Roger D Launius

1 Whither the Space Shuttle Roger D. Launius National Air and Space Museum Smithsonian Institution

What Do You do for an Encore after you have been to the Moon? 2

Early Space Shuttle Concepts 3 3

A Creature of Compromise 4 • Approved January 5, 1972, $5. 15 B price tag. • First flight April 12 -14, 1981. • Space Shuttle to provide routine, inexpensive, reliable, access to space. • Next step in realizing vision of multi-planetary human presence. • Viewed as “one-size-fits-all” space access vehicle. • Was to position U. S. as central space access entity in world.

Building the Shuttle • Intended to fly by 1978. • Two critical technological challenges: • Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) • Thermal Protection System (TPS) 5

Space Shuttle Operations • 1981—First flight of Columbia. • 1982—Pres. Reagan declares Space Shuttle operational. • 1986—Challenger accident at launch of 25 th flight. • 1988—Return to flight of shuttle. • 1995—First docking at Russian Mir space station. • 1998—STS-95, John Glenn flight. • 1998—First orbital assembly of ISS. • 2003—Columbia accident on reentry. Total of 113 missions, 111 successful. • 2005—Return to flight, STS-115. • 2011— 135 missions flown. 6

Preparing for Launch 7

Go for Launch 8

Living and Working in Orbit 9

The EVA Experience 10

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Shuttle/Mir Program, 1995 -98 13

14 Tragedies: Challenger 1986 and Columbia 2003

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Building the International Space Station 18

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Assessing the Shuttle’s Legacy 20 20

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