Space Shuttles and Launch Vehicles

Columbia was the first space shuttle to be launched, on April 12, 1981.

Five space shuttles were built: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour.

The space shuttles were used for a variety of purposes, including transporting astronauts and cargo to and from Earth orbit, conducting scientific research in space, and repairing and maintaining satellites.

The Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME) was the launch vehicle used to launch the space shuttles.

The space shuttles flew a total of 135 missions.

STS-135 was the last space shuttle mission, which launched on July 8, 2011.

Challenger was the space shuttle that was destroyed in the Challenger disaster on January 28, 1986.

Columbia was the space shuttle that was destroyed in the Columbia disaster on February 1, 2003.

The maximum altitude reached by a space shuttle was 621 miles, which was achieved by the Discovery mission STS-95 in 1998.

The maximum speed reached by a space shuttle was 17,500 mph, which was achieved by the Discovery mission STS-4 in 1982.

A total of 355 people have flown on a space shuttle.

John Young was the first person to fly on a space shuttle, as the commander of the STS-1 mission in 1981.

Sally Ride was the first woman to fly on a space shuttle, as a mission specialist on the STS-7 mission in 1983.

Guion Bluford was the first African American to fly on a space shuttle, as a mission specialist on the STS-8 mission in 1983.

Franklin Chang-Diaz was the first Hispanic American to fly on a space shuttle, as a mission specialist on the STS-61-C mission in 1986.