6.2.

1 Space Shuttle: Concepts and initial tests

Space Mission Design and Operations
Prof. Claude Nicollier

Credits: NASA
Post Apollo LEO access – The US approach

The Space Shuttle was developed in the

US, at the end of the Apollo program
before 1972.
Reusable spacecraft for access to low
Earth orbit with the idea to launch
commercial payloads and to use it for the
needs of the Department of Defense
and to do space exploration and
utilization.

Credits: NASA, Bill Ingals

Space Mission Design and Operations
Shuttle early concept – Fully reusable spacecraft – 1971

2 stages spacecraft:
- First stage with cryogenic engines and LH2, LO2
propellants,
- Second stage: the orbiter.

The size and requirements of the payload bay were

determined by the Department of Defense.

Credits: T. A. Heppenheimer, History

of the Space Shuttle vol. 1, The
Space Shuttle Decision 1965-1972,
Smithsonian institution press

Space Mission Design and Operations

Shuttle – Alternative concept

Credits: T. A. Heppenheimer, History

of the Space Shuttle vol. 1, The
Space Shuttle Decision 1965-1972,
Smithsonian institution press

Space Mission Design and Operations

Shuttle – Alternative concept

The Cross Range is the capability to land

outside of the plane of the initial orbit.

Requirement of the Department of

Defense: large cross range in order to
give more flexibility for the landing site.

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
Costs trade-off

A fully reusable spacecraft would have

induced quite high development cost for a
relatively low operation cost, because
everything was going to be reusable.
Due to budget limitations, NASA and the
US government had to cut it off at the
lower point of the horizontal axis,
meaning less development costs but a
higher cost per flights as the final
configuration chosen was only partially
reusable.

Credits: NASA, George Low,

John Logsdon
Space Mission Design and Operations
Shuttle – Chosen configuration

SRBs, solid rocket

boosters, provide
the highest fraction
of thrust for the
initial launch until 2
min after the launch
where they are fully
burned out,
jettisoned and fell
down in the ocean.
They could be
recovered by boats
and reused on later
flights after
refurbishment.

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) – 1977 – Crewmembers

Protection tiles are able to resist high temperature

during the re-entry.
The heating was mainly in the nose of the Orbiter,
the leading edge of the wings and the bottom of the
Orbiter (black tiles).
The white areas were also covered with thermal
protection tiles, but not with the same capabilities that
the black ones.
Enterprise Space Shuttle used for ALT for being
brought in relatively high atmosphere, a few
kilometers above the Earth surface.
Enterprise had all avionics, landing gear, guidance
navigation system for the final approach, and the
structure of the Orbit but no thermal protection tiles
and not the real cryogenic engines

Credits: NASA, JSC,

Media Resource Library
Space Mission Design and Operations
ALT – Orbiter attached to the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA)

The tail cone is used to reduce the drag and bring less
turbulence toward the tail.

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
ALT – First free flight, with tail cone

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
ALT – Separation from the SCA, tail cone removed

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
Landing at Dryden Flight Research Center – California

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
6.2.2 Space Shuttle: First flight
Space Mission Design and Operations
Prof. Claude Nicollier

Credits: NASA
 Space Shuttle program

● ALT in 1977

● OFT: STS-1
OFTs (Orbital Flight Tests): Tests of the in April 1981 to
system STS-4 in 1982

● Operations: STS-5
in 1982 to
STS-135 in 2011

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
Crew of STS-1 – John Young and Robert Crippen

John Young, the Commander, was a

very experienced astronaut, he had
flown on the Gemini Program two
times, and he was the Commander of
Apollo 16.
John Young flew again on the 9th
Shuttle flight, which was also the first
flight of the European Spacelab.

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
Training in Columbia simulator before first flight

The Space Shuttle was the first spacecraft

with software involved to control and
monitor inputs of the crew on the controls,
faring of the thrusters, etc.
Special suits and ejection seats in case
there was a problem during the initial part
of the ascent to orbit.
The ejection seats were removed from
STS-5 on.

Credits: NASA, JSC

Space Mission Design and Operations
STS-1 – Columbia on launch pad

Credits: NASA, KSC

Space Mission Design and Operations
STS-1 – Lift-off – April 12, 1981

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
STS-1 – On orbit

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
STS-1 – Landing at Edwards

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations
STS-1 – John & Crip after landing

Credits: NASA
Space Mission Design and Operations