Space Shuttle Program
ℹ️ More about the Space Shuttle Program Collection
The Space Shuttle collection celebrates one of the greatest engineering programs in human history. From 1981 to 2011, five orbiters carried astronauts, satellites, and experiments into space, shaping an era of exploration and discovery. Each specimen in this collection offers a direct link to that legacy.
Highlights include flown fragments of Columbia’s nose landing gear tire, material that endured the stress of re-entry, and authentic thermal protection tiles designed to shield the Shuttle from the heat of spaceflight. A special Space Shuttle Fleet bundle brings together specimens from all five orbiters: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour.
Every artifact tells a story of human achievement, from the roar of liftoff at Cape Canaveral to the precise landings that brought crews safely home. These materials embody the challenges and triumphs of the Shuttle era, when reusable spacecraft became reality.
All items are carefully documented, presented with certificates of authenticity, and selected to honor the history of the Shuttle program. The Space Shuttle collection is your invitation to hold a piece of the machines that carried humanity into orbit for three decades.
Space Shuttle Columbia - Flown HRSI Tile Fragment
Space Exposed Tomato Seeds
Complete Your Fleet!
Collect Specimens from All Five Mission-Flown Space Shuttles
The Space Shuttle Program
"The dream is alive." ~ Commander John Young after the successful return of STS-1
Above: Space Shuttle Discovery stands ready for STS-116 at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39B on November 9, 2006 (Source: NASA image KSC-06PD-2481)
📸 A classic cutaway drawing of the Space Shuttle created by NASA artists in February, 1981. We desperately wanted to include this image in the Fourth Edition Companion Guide but we ran out of space. (Source NASA S81-30630)
NASA's Space Shuttle program delivered 133 successful missions during its three decades in operation, beginning with Columbia's inaugural launch in 1981 and concluding with Atlantis' final flight in 2011.
Missions involved many vital tasks, such as maintaining the International Space Station, repairing the Hubble Space Telescope, and deploying satellites. Scientific experiments featured heavily in the rotation, using the reusable Spacelab developed by the ESA.
📸 Birdseye view of Discovery from Bay 3 of NASA's Vehicle Assembly Building. The Orbiter will soon begin its 4.2-mile journey via the crawlerway to Launch Pad 39B.(STS-121, May 19, 2006). (Source: NASA KSC-06PD0859)
FURTHER READING
Harland, David M. The space shuttle: roles, missions, and accomplishments. Vol. 2. John Wiley & Sons, 1998.
White, Rowland. Into the Black: The Extraordinary Untold Story of the First Flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia and the Astronauts Who Flew Her. Simon and Schuster, 2017.
Faget, Maxime A. "Space shuttle vehicle and system." U.S. Patent No. 3,702,688. 14 Nov. 1972.
Lamoreux, James C., James D. Siekierski, and JP Nick Carter. "Space Shuttle thermal protection system inspection by 3D imaging laser radar." Laser Radar Technology and Applications IX. Vol. 5412. SPIE, 2004.
Harris, Richard, Michael Stewart, and William Koenig. "Thermal Protection Systems Technology Transfer from Apollo and Space Shuttle to the Orion Program." 2018 AIAA SPACE and Astronautics Forum and Exposition. 2018.
Jenkins, Dennis R. Space shuttle: the history of the National Space Transportation System: the first 100 missions. DR Jenkins, 2001.
Jenkins, Dennis R. Space Shuttle: Developing an Icon: 1972-2013. Specialty Press, 2016.
Above: Atlantis lands at the Kennedy Space Center for the final time. (Source NASA KSC-2011-5842 July 21, 2011)
Libyan Desert Glass Pendant
Space Shuttle Columbia - Flown HRSI Tile Fragment
