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SPACE SHUTTLE



  • The first US SPACE SHUTTLE was launched on 12 April 1981.
  • The Shuttle is reusable and since that first journey many more missions have been flown, teaching astronauts a lot more about living and working in space.

  • The Shuttle Orbiter is a cross between a space station and a space plane.
  • People can live inside it as it orbits the Earth.
  • It can land its crew safely back home and then, after being checked and refitted, it can fly on another mission.
  • It is mainly used to launch satellites and to rescue them for repair.
  • Computers control all the Orbiters systems.
  • The crews check these systems by looking at consoles on the flight deck high up on the nose.
  • Mission Control back on Earth constantly monitors the computers.
  • Astronauts have a miniature kitchen called a galley, where they heat up their food in pre-packed containers.
  • Four people can rest in the sleep station, strapping themselves into sleeping bags.
  • One sleeps upside down and one sleeps standing up. Because they are weightless, it feels quite normal.
  • The Orbiter can take up to seven crewmembers, led by a commander.
  • On board they float around weightlessly. But the can anchor themselves by fitting their boots into straps.