Slideshow: Important Moments in Space Shuttle History
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STS-1 Launches on April 12, 2011
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-1.jpgAfter a decade of development and testing, NASA sent Columbia into space on the shuttle program’s first orbital mission, known as STS-1. Commanded by veteran astronaut John Young, the only person who has piloted four different classes of spacecraft, Columbia orbited the Earth 37 times over a 54.5-hour period. The shuttle’s maiden voyage occurred 20 years to the day after the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to enter outer space on April 12, 1961. Despite some problems, STS-1 was deemed a success, and Columbia went on to fly the next four shuttle missions. (Credit: NASA)
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Extravehicular Activity Outside Challenger During STS-6
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-6.jpgThe second shuttle to be put into service, Challenger took off from Kennedy Space Center for the first time on April 4, 1983. The primary aim of the mission was to deploy the first satellite of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS) network, which NASA uses to communicate with spacecraft and for a variety of other purposes. The STS-6 mission was also remarkable because it was the first time astronauts used newly designed space suits known as Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMUs) to perform tasks outside the spacecraft, such as spacewalks. (Credit: NASA)
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Astronauts of the STS-7 Challenger Mission
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-7.jpgThe crew of Challenger’s second mission, STS-7, which launched on June 18, 1983, included mission specialist Sally Ride, the first American woman–and the youngest American in history–to enter space. Ride went on to fly a second mission before working as a NASA strategist, becoming a physics professor and founding a science education company that fosters young people’s interest in science, math and technology. (Credit: NASA)
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Astronauts of the STS-8 Challenger Mission
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-8.jpgThe crew of Challenger’s third mission, STS-8, which launched on August 30, 1983, included the mission specialist Guion Bluford, the first African American to enter space. It was also the first time a shuttle launched and landed at night. (Credit: NASA)
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View of Mission Control During STS-41-D
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-41-d.jpgSpace shuttle Discovery took off on its maiden voyage, STS-41-D, on August 30, 1984, launching after a two-month delay caused by a variety of technical problems. Discovery was retired on March 9, 2011, after completing 39 successful missions. (Credit: NASA)
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Atlantis Completes its First Mission, STS-51-J
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-51-j.jpgSpace shuttle Atlantis entered service on October 3, 1985, carrying a classified payload for the U.S. Department of Defense. Atlantis has now completed 32 flights and is slated to fly the final mission of the shuttle program by the end of 2011. (Credit: NASA)
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Exhaust Trail of STS-51-L
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-51-l.jpgOn January 28, 1986, the American shuttle orbiter Challenger broke up 73 seconds after liftoff, bringing a devastating end to the spacecraft's 10th mission. The disaster claimed the lives of all seven astronauts aboard, including Christa McAuliffe, a teacher from New Hampshire who had been selected to join the mission and teach lessons from space to schoolchildren around the country. It was later determined that two rubber O-rings, which had been designed to separate the sections of the rocket booster, had failed due to cold temperatures on the morning of the launch. The tragedy and its aftermath received extensive media coverage and prompted NASA to temporarily suspend all shuttle missions. (Credit: NASA)
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The Hubble Space Telescope
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-31.jpgOn April 24, 1990, Atlantis launched from Kennedy Space Center on the STS-31 mission with one of the shuttle program’s most significant payloads yet: the massive and powerful Hubble Space Telescope, which has dazzled earthlings with its stunning images of outer space while helping scientists achieve important breakthroughs in astrophysics. Several subsequent shuttle missions have been conducted with the primary goal of servicing the telescope. (Credit: NASA)
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Three Crew Members Capture Intelsat VI During Endeavor’s First Mission
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-49.jpgSpace shuttle Endeavor took off on its maiden voyage, STS-49, on May 7, 1992. Its goal was to retrieve the Intelsat VI satellite, a feat that was ultimately accomplished by the first three-person spacewalk. (Credit: NASA)
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Official STS-107 Crew Photo
http://www.history.com/news/news/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/sts-107.jpgTragedy struck the shuttle program for a second time on February 1, 2003, when Columbia disintegrated while entering the atmosphere over Texas, killing all seven crew members on board. Eighty seconds into its launch on January 16, a piece of foam insulation had detached from the shuttle's propellant tank and hit the edge of the shuttle's left wing, but neither NASA nor the crew realized the extent of the damage. Upon reentry, because the heat-resistant tiles covering the left wing's leading edge had been broken or were missing, wind and heat entered the wing and blew it apart. In August 2003, an investigation board issued a report that revealed that it in fact would have been possible either for the Columbia crew to repair the damage to the wing or for the crew to be rescued from the shuttle. (Credit: NASA)
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