News tagged with space shuttle

SpaceX Dragon capsule splash lands in Pacific

US company SpaceX's cargo vessel Thursday splash landed in the Pacific Ocean, capping a successful mission to the International Space Station that blazed a new path for private spaceflight.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 31, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (15) | comments 6

SpaceX cargo ship leaves orbit on way back to Earth

The unmanned Dragon cargo vessel operated by US company SpaceX on Thursday completed its deorbit burn, one of the final steps in its return to Earth for an ocean landing, NASA said.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 31, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 0

Medical treatments from 200 miles up

In the hunt for cancer treatments, researchers have had some help from higher authorities -- way higher. The International Space Station, orbiting the Earth at more than 200 miles in the sky, houses scientific ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 28, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0

SpaceX capsule has 'new car' smell, astronauts say (Update)

SpaceX's Dragon cargo vessel smells like a new car, said astronauts at the International Space Station after opening the hatches Saturday following the spacecraft's landmark mission to the orbiting lab.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 26, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (23) | comments 11

Astronauts capture SpaceX's Dragon for station dock

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station reached out and caught SpaceX's Dragon capsule for docking at the orbiting lab on Friday in a historic first for commercial spaceflight.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 0

Dragon arrives at space station in historic 1st (Update 2)

The privately bankrolled Dragon capsule made a historic arrival at the International Space Station on Friday, triumphantly captured by astronauts wielding a giant robot arm.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (11) | comments 20

SpaceX readies space station rendezvous

The US company SpaceX on Friday prepared for the climax of its Dragon capsule's landmark mission to the International Space Station with a high-stakes bid to latch on to the orbiting research lab.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 24, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Commercial space race gets crowded behind SpaceX

(AP) -- A privately built space capsule that's zipping its way to the International Space Station has also launched something else: A new for-profit space race.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 23, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 2

Commercial spacecraft speeds toward space station

(AP) -- Opening a new, entrepreneurial era in spaceflight, a ship built by a billionaire businessman sped toward the International Space Station with a load of groceries and other supplies Tuesday after a ...

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 22, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (4) | comments 5

SpaceX readies new attempt of rocket launch to space lab (Update)

SpaceX on Monday readied a fresh bid to become the first private company to launch its own craft to the International Space Station after fixing an engine problem that grounded its earlier attempt.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (6) | comments 1

Friction stir welding unites reliability, affordability

(Phys.org) -- NASA's next heavy-lift launch vehicle, the Space Launch System, is moving further in development faster thanks to proven advanced technologies like friction stir welding.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 21, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

SpaceX rocket launch aborted in last half-second (Update)

Engineers aborted the launch of a privately built spacecraft on a landmark mission to the International Space Station at the last second Saturday due to a rocket engine problem.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 19, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (11) | comments 19

SpaceX rocket set to blast off, open new space era

A private company is on the verge of making history by launching a spacecraft to the International Space Station.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 19, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1

NASA says competition is key to private space race

Competition is vital to the race among private companies to replace the space shuttle, NASA said Thursday, after Congress called for the US space agency to fund a single company.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 17, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 3

SpaceX poised for high-stakes space station launch

SpaceX on Saturday aims to become the first private company to send its own cargo ship to the International Space Station, a feat that only a handful of world governments have pulled off.

Space & Earth / Space Exploration

created May 17, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (5) | comments 5

Space Shuttle

NASA's Space Shuttle, officially named the Space Transportation System (STS), is the spacecraft currently used by the United States government for its human spaceflight missions and is scheduled to be retired from service in 2010. At launch, it consists of a rust-colored external tank (ET), two white, slender Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs), and the orbiter, which is a winged spaceplane in the narrowest sense.

The orbiter carries astronauts and payload such as satellites or space station parts into low earth orbit, into the Earth's upper atmosphere or thermosphere. Usually, five to seven crew members ride in the orbiter. The payload capacity is 22,700 kilograms (50,000 lb). When the orbiter's mission is complete it fires its Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS) thrusters to drop out of orbit and re-enters the lower atmosphere. During the descent, the shuttle orbiter decelerates from hypersonic speed primarily by aerobraking and then for the landing phase it acts as a glider, making a completely unpowered (deadstick) landing.

For more information about Space Shuttle, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.