The Shuttle Orbiters – How They Were Named
Sunday, November 22nd, 2009 at
1:05 am
admin asked:
On April 10, 1981 a crowd of more than 600 000 spectators crowded the beaches and causeways around the Kennedy Space Center. They all came to see the launch of the first shuttle mission. Many could see the Columbia poised on the pad before it was launched. When people three miles away felt the heat on their faces they knew they had seen something remarkable. In the years to come other orbiters would join their leader. Here is how they got their names.
The Enterprise
- this test model got the name made popular as Captain Kirks ship in the popular TV series Star Trek.
Columbia
- named after a U.S. Navy frigate that sailed around the world in 1836 and secondly also after the command module for the first moon landing. The Eagle was the name of the Lunar Lander. Columbia would be the second orbiter to end its life in disaster as it was torn to pieces during the re-entry after a successful mission.
Challenger
- named after another U.S. frigate that explored the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in 1870
Discovery
Two ships with the same name was the inspiration behind this name. The ship with which Henry Hudson explored Hudson Bay and that of James Cooks voyage to the Hawaiian Islands in 1776
Atlantis
- named after an American two-masted ketch that sailed 800 000 kilometers, carrying out oceanographic research between 1930 and 1936
Endeavour
- the last of the orbiters to receive a name of a famous sailing ship. This was the name of the ship Captain James Cook used on his first voyage to the South when he charted New Zealand and the eastern coastline of Australia.
The Orbiters will not be replaced and only three are left. The Challenger and Columbia were both destroyed during ill fated flights.
Leon is a serious scholar of Astronomy and writer of numerous articles on subjects such as Astronomy, Spirituality, Travel, Ancient Cultures. His work can be seen here and on other sites such as at http://monkcave.com/ams
On April 10, 1981 a crowd of more than 600 000 spectators crowded the beaches and causeways around the Kennedy Space Center. They all came to see the launch of the first shuttle mission. Many could see the Columbia poised on the pad before it was launched. When people three miles away felt the heat on their faces they knew they had seen something remarkable. In the years to come other orbiters would join their leader. Here is how they got their names.
The Enterprise
- this test model got the name made popular as Captain Kirks ship in the popular TV series Star Trek.
Columbia
- named after a U.S. Navy frigate that sailed around the world in 1836 and secondly also after the command module for the first moon landing. The Eagle was the name of the Lunar Lander. Columbia would be the second orbiter to end its life in disaster as it was torn to pieces during the re-entry after a successful mission.
Challenger
- named after another U.S. frigate that explored the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in 1870
Discovery
Two ships with the same name was the inspiration behind this name. The ship with which Henry Hudson explored Hudson Bay and that of James Cooks voyage to the Hawaiian Islands in 1776
Atlantis
- named after an American two-masted ketch that sailed 800 000 kilometers, carrying out oceanographic research between 1930 and 1936
Endeavour
- the last of the orbiters to receive a name of a famous sailing ship. This was the name of the ship Captain James Cook used on his first voyage to the South when he charted New Zealand and the eastern coastline of Australia.
The Orbiters will not be replaced and only three are left. The Challenger and Columbia were both destroyed during ill fated flights.
Leon is a serious scholar of Astronomy and writer of numerous articles on subjects such as Astronomy, Spirituality, Travel, Ancient Cultures. His work can be seen here and on other sites such as at http://monkcave.com/ams
Filed under: Astrology
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