The space shuttle was the world’s first reusable spacecraft. Instead of a stack of rocket stages, it has separate booster rocket and a big fuel tank. The shuttle drops these before reaching orbit. It eventually glides back to Earth using its wings.
What is an MMU?
The Manned Manoeuvring Unit, or MMU, is a small strap-on spacecraft. Together with a space suit, the MMU lets an astronaut move freely through space. It uses 24 tiny jets of gas to travel in any direction.
Amazing! The shuttle has a special area for cargo. It can hold up to 29 tonnes. That’s the size and weight of an adult humpback whale!
Is it true? The shuttle is protected by tiles.
Yes. The shuttle is made from aluminium. This metal is very light, but it melts at high temperatures. A shuttle can heat up to 3,000oC as it returns to Earth, so it needs 20,000 heat proof tiles, which are glued on to its nose and belly.
What does the space shuttle do?
The shuttle was first used for taking large satellites into orbit. After one shuttle blew up in 1986, NASA decided to use unmanned rockets again for launching satellites. The shuttle is now devoted to research, repairing satellites in orbit, and to building a space station.
Picture Credit : Google
