Human Space Flight 1 - First Orbiter 2 - General Information 3 - Orbiter Processing Home 4 - External Tank 5 - Solid Rocket Boosters 6 - Cabin Crew 7 - Cargo Bay 8 - Main Engine/Quiz 9 - Additional Resources This page was adapted from The Space Shuttle Clickable Map by Joshua S. Mussaf. It is intended for students in grades 4-6. For the original, more advanced version, click "Additional Resources," and follow the link to the Space Shuttle Clickable Map.

The First Orbiter - The first orbiter spacecraft, Enterprise, was rolled out on September 17, 1976, solely for use in the Approach and Landing Test program. This program demonstrated the orbiter could fly in the atmosphere and land like an airplane except without power. In other words, the orbiter flew as a glider.

Flight and landing tests were conducted by attaching the orbiter on top of a 747 and then releasing it during flight. In five free flights, the astronaut crew of the orbiter separated the spacecraft from the 747 and maneuvered to a landing at Edwards Air Force Base. The second orbiter, Columbia, was the first to actually fly into space.

Launch to Landing - At launch, the three Space Shuttle main engines are ignited first using hydrogen and oxygen from the external tank. When the engines have been checked out, the solid rocket boosters are ignited. At the proper time, the hold-down bolts on the boosters are exploded to release the Space Shuttle for liftoff. All this takes only a few seconds.

Approximately 1 minute later, the two boosters have used all their propellant and are jettisoned from the external tank. The boosters briefly continue to rise, while small motors fire to carry them away from the Space Shuttle. The boosters then turn and descend, and parachutes are used for a safe splashdown in the ocean. The boosters are recovered and reused. Meanwhile, the orbiter and external tank continue to ascend, using the thrust of the three Space Shuttle main engines. Orbital maneuvering engines are used to complete insertion into the desired Earth orbit. Approximately 8 minutes after launch, just before achieving the desired orbit, the three Space Shuttle engines are shut down and the external tank is jettisoned. The external tank disintegrates as it re-enters the atmosphere.

The orbiter Columbia glides down a   runway of the Shuttle Landing Facility   following the successful completion   of a mission.

At the end of the mission, ceramic tiles covering the outside of the orbiter protect it from the extremely high temperatures encountered during re-entry into Earth's atmosphere. The unpowered orbiter glides to Earth and lands on a runway like an airplane.

A parachute and the braking system on the main landing gear wheels are used for stopping the orbiter on the runway. During landing, the nose wheel is steerable similar to an airplane. Upon landing, the orbiter is immediately "safed" by a ground crew with special equipment, the first step in the process which will result in another launch of this particular orbiter.