This time, the spacecraft is to be delicately inserted into the first of its many orbits around the moon. Space shuttle Atlantis launches on the STS-117 mission.This video is part of the Rocket Science topic module of NASAs Do-It-Yourself Podcast. Its propulsion system must act once again. On the last of those orbits, its own on-board propulsion system nudges it into position where it will become subject to the pull of the moon’s gravity.Īs it approaches the moon, it must perform still another critical maneuver. Early on, the spacecraft begins to orbit the Earth. These begin with its activation and checkout, immediately after it separates from the rocket. Plans call for the spacecraft to orbit the moon for 100 days on a science mission which includes collecting data on subjects such as the fragile, tenuous lunar atmosphere.Įventually, according to the plans, the spacecraft, its fuel expended, will spiral down to the lunar surface of the moon.īefore it gets to that point, intricate maneuvering is required of the spacecraft. Meanwhile, he said the spacecraft was indeed on its way to the moon, and on a “perfect trajectory.”And from all that was known on Saturday morning, he said, NASA was confident that the mission “will be” a success. Saturday news briefing a NASA official said some “bugs” in the spacecraft needed to be “ironed out.”īut Pete Worden said NASA was “confident we can do so.” The rocket which burned thousands of pounds of solid fuel to lift it will not make the tripĪt a 2 a.m. on July 21, space shuttle Atlantis dropped out of the predawn darkness and landed at Kennedys Shuttle Landing Facility Runway 15. It is only the spacecraft, about the size of a small auto, and a few hundred pounds in weight, that is to go to the moon. NASA reported the completion of a vital step: separating the spacecraft from the rocket. Within a few minutes, another NASA tweet said that the rocket’s fourth stage “is now lit.”īy 11:50 p.m. The rocket that launched the spacecraft was a five-stage Minotaur V, provided by Orbital Sciences, a Dulles-based company.Įverything, at least in the initial minutes, appeared to follow plan.“Headed to the moon,” a NASA tweet read. These places included the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in the District. People gathered in spots near and far to see the first-of-its-kind launch. They described it as wonderful and amazing. They called it magnificent, awesome, spectacular. Those who spotted it often deployed the same or similar adjectives. Someone else saw it from the Key Bridge area. A high-level NASA official responded that he was appalled by the. Nevertheless, the space shuttle launched a variety of commercial and military. He took a photo that showed both the dome of the Capitol and the bright orange streak in the sky above it, produced as the rocket burned its fuel. The Decision to Launch the Space Shuttle Challenger. NASA administrator, once said, Flying in space is a bold business. Bill Anderson spotted it from his apartment house on Pennsylvania Avenue NW.
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