What does an orbiter do on a Space Shuttle?

What does an orbiter do on a Space Shuttle?

The Orbiter is both the brains and heart of the Space Transportation System. About the same size and weight as a DC-9 aircraft, the Orbiter contains the pressurized crew compartment (which can normally carry up to seven crew members), the huge cargo bay, and the three main engines mounted on its aft end.

How many engines did the orbiter have?

three
The three Space Shuttle Main Engines, in conjunction with the Solid Rocket Boosters, provide the thrust to lift the Orbiter off the ground for the initial ascent. The main engines continue to operate for 8.5 minutes after launch, the duration of the Shuttle’s powered flight.

How fast do space shuttles travel to leave Earth?

A spacecraft leaving the surface of Earth, for example, needs to be going about 11 kilometers (7 miles) per second, or over 40,000 kilometers per hour (25,000 miles per hour), to enter orbit. Achieving escape velocity is one of the biggest challenges facing space travel.

How big is the orbiter?

Space Shuttle orbiter

How does an orbiter work?

Orbiter landing To leave orbit, the orbiter fires its thrusters and decelerates (slows down) from hypersonic speed. It drops down through Earth’s atmosphere underside first, generating enormous heat through friction with the atmosphere.

Why was the space shuttle created?

space shuttle, also called Space Transportation System, partially reusable rocket-launched vehicle designed to go into orbit around Earth, to transport people and cargo to and from orbiting spacecraft, and to glide to a runway landing on its return to Earth’s surface that was developed by the U.S. National Aeronautics …

How fast does a space shuttle go?

about 17,500 miles per hour
A. Like any other object in low-Earth orbit, a Space Shuttle must reach speeds of about 17,500 miles per hour (28,000 kilometers per hour) to remain in orbit.

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