Space Shuttle

space · rockets · NASA

Reusable spaceship. Unlike rockets that were thrown away, the Space Shuttle could be flown to space and back many times.

Worked for 30 years. NASA flew the Space Shuttle from 1981 all the way until 2011.

Low Earth orbit. It carried astronauts and cargo into orbit just above our planet.

Lands like a plane. After its mission, the Shuttle glided down and touched down on a runway, just like an airplane.

Real name STS. Its official name was the Space Transportation System, born from a 1969 plan for reusable spacecraft.