Endeavour’s First Spaceflight
The Final Shuttle Built Took to Space for the First Time
The Space Shuttle Endeavour lifted off for the first time on May 7th, 1992. Endeavour was the last of the Shuttles to be built; NASA ordered the creation of the new Shuttle after the loss of the Challenger.
Interestingly, the delivery of Endeavour to Kennedy Space Center took place exactly one year before its first launch. On May 7th, 1991, Endeavour arrived at KSC atop one of the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Before we get to STS-49, Endeavour’s first mission, let’s go over a brief history of the Shuttle program. The Space Shuttle was just one part of the original vision for the Space Transportation System.
Endeavour embarked on 25 voyages of scientific exploration during its lifetime. The orbiter spent 299 days in space, completed 4,671 orbits of Earth, and traveled 122,883,151 miles.
During the Nixon administration, the Space Transportation System was envisioned as a fleet of different space vehicles designed to take humans everywhere in the solar system.
The primary parts of the Space Transportation System were: a space station that could carry up to 100 people. A shuttle, similar…
