OrbitalHub

This is a very emotional story of the Space Shuttle, narrated by William Shatner, in praise of the men and women who made the Space Shuttle program a reality.

Some names will stay with us forever:

Francis R. Scobee – Commander
Michael J. Smith – Pilot
Judith A. Resnik – Mission Specialist 1
Ellison Onizuka – Mission Specialist 2
Ronald E. McNair – Mission Specialist 3
Gregory B. Jarvis – Payload Specialist 1
Sharon Christa McAuliffe – Payload Specialist 2

Rick D. Husband – Commander
William C. McCool – Pilot
Michael P. Anderson – Payload Commander
David M. Brown – Mission Specialist 1
Kalpana Chawla – Mission Specialist 2
Laurel Clark – Mission Specialist 3
Ilan Ramon – Payload Specialist 1

Read more about the Space Shuttle…

SpaceX conducted a 60-second test firing of a Merlin Vacuum rocket engine at the SpaceX Test Facility in McGregor, Texas. The Merlin Vacuum engine powers the Falcon 9 second stage, generates 92,500 lb of force in vacuum, and operates with a specific impulse of 342 seconds.

Read more about Falcon 9…

An U.S. Air Force Minotaur 1 rocket lifted off with ORS-1 satellite from NASA\’s Launch Range at the Wallops Flight Facility and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport in Virginia. ORS-1 is a Department of Defense Operationally Responsive Space Office satellite.

“We are very pleased with the results of this evening’s flight of the Minotaur I rocket, and are proud to be able to support the Department of Defense’s important work in the area of Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) systems,” said Mr. Ron Grabe, Orbital’s Executive Vice President and General Manager of its Launch Systems Group. “Following this successful
launch, our Minotaur launch team’s focus will shift to the Minotaur IV vehicle, which is scheduled to conduct two launches later this year, including the HTV-2b mission for DARPA and the TacSat-4 mission for the Air Force.”

Read more about Minotaur launch vehicle…

The animation contains the key events of the Mars Science Laboratory mission. The mission will land an exploration rover, Curiosity, on Mars in August 2012.

Read more about Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover…

The Progress M-11M cargo spacecraft (Progress 43 western designation) docked at the International Space Station on June 23, 2011. Progress contains almost three tons of food, fuel, and supplies.

Read more about the International Space Station…

On June 21, 2011, a Soyuz-U launch vehicle lifted off from Baikonur. Soyuz-U placed into orbit the Progress M-11M cargo spacecraft, which is headed for the International Space Station.

Read more about Progress…