Wheels stop : the tragedies and triumphs of the Space Shuttle Program, 1986-2011 / Rick Houston ; foreword by Jerry Ross.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Houston, Rick, 1967-

Series:

Outward odyssey

Outward odyssey : a people's history of spaceflight

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Space Shuttle Program (U.S.)--History.

Space Shuttle Program (U.S.).

Space shuttles--United States--History.

Space shuttles.

History.

United States.

Physical Description:

xxiv, 428 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Lincoln : University of Nebraska Press, [2013]

Summary:

Humanity's first reusable spacecraft and the most complex machine ever built, NASA's Space Shuttle debuted with great promise and as a dependable source of wonder and national pride. But with the Challenger catastrophe in 1986, the whole Space Shuttle program came into question, as did NASA itself, so long an institution that was seemingly above reproach. Wheels Stop tells the stirring story of how, after the Challenger disaster, the Space Shuttle not only recovered but went on to perform its greatest missions. From the Return to Flight mission of STS-26 in 1988 to the last shuttle mission ever on STS-135 in 2011, Wheels Stop takes readers behind the scenes as the shuttle's crews begin to mend Cold War tensions with the former Soviet Union, conduct vital research, deploy satellites, repair the Hubble Space Telescope, and assist in constructing the International Space Station. It also tells the heart-wrenching story of the Columbia tragedy and the loss of the magnificent STS-107 crew. As complex as the shuttle was, the people it carried into orbit were often more so--and this is their story, too. Close encounters with astronauts, flight controllers, and shuttle workers capture the human side of the Space Shuttle's amazing journey--and invite readers along for the ride.

Contents:

Back in the Game

Cloak and Dagger, Science on Orbit

Hubble Huggers

Sleeping with the Enemy

A Home on Orbit

"The Debris was Talking to Me"

We Came Home

A Kick in the Pants

The End of an Era

A Magnificent Machine.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 389-401) and index.

ISBN:

9780803235342

0803235348

OCLC:

839395927