Space Shuttle Discovery | National Air and Space Museum Discovery was the third Space Shuttle orbiter vehicle to fly in space It entered service in 1984 and retired from spaceflight as the oldest and most utilized orbiter Discovery was flown on 39 Earth-orbital missions, spent a total of 365 days in space, and traveled almost 240 million kilometers (150 million miles)--more than the other orbiters
Space Shuttle program - National Air and Space Museum The Space Shuttle program ran from presidential approval in 1972 to its end in 2011 It was the fourth human spaceflight program carried out by the United States and NASA The Space Shuttle, officially known as the Space Transportation System (STS), was the first reusable spacecraft to carry humans into orbit
Space Shuttle Discovery | National Air and Space Museum The space shuttle Discovery is the centerpiece of the James S McDonnell Space Hangar at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center | National Air and Space Museum At the Udvar-Hazy Center, you'll be surrounded with icons of aviation and spaceflight, from the Space Shuttle Discovery to the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, and many, more Each section of aircraft is accompanied by a short label, making this a favorite museum for our youngest visitors to explore
John Glenns Return to Space on Discovery Glenn had the distinction of being the only original astronaut (from the Mercury 7 group selected in 1959) to fly on the Space Shuttle That mission was Discovery’s 25 th flight, itself a milestone of longevity With one flight in 1962 and another in 1998, John Glenn uniquely bridged two eras in space history and left his mark in each
5 Unusual Facts About Space Shuttle Discovery On August 30, 1984, Space Shuttle Discovery took off on its first mission—beginning its nearly 30 years of space exploration When Discovery retired in 2011, it was NASA’s oldest and most accomplished orbiter It flew nearly 150 million miles and spent 365 days in space, flying just about every type of mission during the shuttle era
Space Shuttle Discovery | National Air and Space Museum Space Shuttle orbiter, delta-winged spaceplane design, covered with white thermal protection blankets and black thermal protection tiles; marked Discovery on both sides of forward fuselage
Making History Aboard Discovery - National Air and Space Museum Astronaut Ellen Ochoa uses a 70mm handheld camera to record an ocean scene during the ATLAS 2 mission aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery, 1993 Credit: NASA Johnson Space Center It was a turning point for Ochoa, whose groundbreaking career would send her on four separate space missions and eventually to the helm of NASA’s Johnson Space
Space Shuttle Discovery | National Air and Space Museum Group photo of staff and contract workers from the National Air and Space Museum and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), taken in front of the Space Shuttle "Discovery" in the James S McDonnell Space Hangar at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F Udvar-Hazy Center, April 23, 2012
Being Discovery ’s Curator - National Air and Space Museum A few short months before the COVID-19 pandemic began, I took over responsibility for one of the Smithsonian’s top five most iconic artifacts—Space Shuttle Discovery (the other four, to me, being those lovable pandas at the Zoo, Dorothy’s sparkling slippers at American History, a huge blue diamond, and maybe that aircraft the brothers from Ohio made)