This week, "New @ MPL" is proud to showcase the writings of local teens from MPL's very own Teen Writing Group. (Our Teen Writing Group meets every Monday afternoon at the Library.)
Today, enjoy this entry from Allen H., sharing some of his in-depth knowledge about the history of the Space Shuttle, and its role in our space program:
One-hundred thirty-five missions. One-hundred thirty-three successes, two failures. These are just a small number of the many statistics that the five space shuttle orbiters -- Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour -- have played a part in.
First launched in 1981, the space shuttle was the first reusable spacecraft. Prior to this launch, however, there were approach and landing tests. A sixth shuttle, a prototype called Enterprise, flew these tests. It was carried on the back of a modified Boeing 747 and jettisoned off the back to test the landing feature of the space shuttle. At an altitude of 300 feet, the shuttle would lower its landing gears and gently touchdown on a runway. There were a number of runways the shuttle could land at: Kennedy Space Center Shuttle Landing Facility, Edwards Air Force Base, and White Sands Space Harbor, just to name a few.
During the thirty-year campaign, the shuttle has seen many great accomplishments. One of the most notable was the deployment, and subsequent repair of, the Hubble Space Telescope. After the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, it was discovered that the main mirror was ground to the wrong specifications, making the pictures blurry. NASA was faced with two options: leave the telescope in its state, or send a space shuttle to repair it.
The Hubble telescope in orbit
Finally clearing a shuttle mission to fix it, NASA put together an elite crew, who had all been to space. They conducted multiple spacewalks and even did back-to-back spacewalks. After the repairs, Hubble started to fulfill its promise of peering into the past and uncovering the origins on the universe. This mission proved that NASA could use the space shuttle to its full potential.
After the initial repair, Hubble has been serviced several times -- the most recent, and final, in 2009, when Space Shuttle Atlantis flew the STS-125 mission.
After the success of the repairs, NASA got involved in an international project: the International Space Station. Partnering with the Russian Space Agency, European Space Agency, and countless others, construction was started on the space station. The orbiting outpost was constructed on opposite sides of the world and then put together for the first time in space. Crews are rotated by Russian Soyuz, and, at times, the space shuttle. The space shuttle also carried most of the heavy cargo to the station, being the only space vehicle that could lift enormous payloads. Having been completed in 2011, the space shuttle was retired at the conclusion of the last flight.
A spacewalk outside the International Space Station
Success was not met without failure, however. During the thirty-year career, two space shuttle missions ended in tragedy. On January 28th, 1985, space shuttle Challenger broke up 73 seconds after liftoff. The accident resulted in the death of all seven astronauts, including the first teacher in space, Christa McAuliffe. Space shuttle Discovery would fly the return-to-flight mission in 1988.
The second failure happened on February 1st, 2003. Space shuttle Columbia was returning from a science mission. Sixteen minutes before landing, the space shuttle broke apart, killing all seven astronauts. The subsequent investigation showed that a piece of foam struck the orbiter during the ascent that made a hole in the underside of the shuttle. This caused it to lose the thermal protection and break apart during the high temperatures of reentry. Space shuttle Discovery again flew the return-to-flight mission in 2005.
Even with these failures, NASA continued to move forward. Eileen Collins said it best: “We want to explore. We're curious people ... We believe in what we're doing. Now it's time to go.” NASA has made major security improvements, including requiring the shuttle to perform heat shield inspections (which include flipping 360 degrees on flights to the Space Station), as well has having a secondary method of returning the astronauts from space. After these requirements, NASA has not experienced any major problems with a spacecraft.
In July of 2011, the space shuttle was retired from flight, with these words from Chris Ferguson at the final landing: “Mission complete, Houston. After serving the world for over 30 years, the space shuttle found its place in history. It's come to a final stop.” The International Space Station is complete, the space shuttle retired; now it is time to move on. Back to the moon, and then -- to Mars.
The space shuttle Endeavour
-- Post by teen volunteer Allen H.
(For more on the history of the space shuttle, check out Space Shuttle: The First 20 Years - detailing the astronauts' experiences in their own words.)
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