John Chakeres' images of NASA's first four space shuttle orbiters are the focus of "First Fleet." Pictured, the proposed design of the photo book to be published in fall 2018.

NASA's shuttle fleet is grounded for good, now that Atlantis has finished its STS-135 mission. But the orbiters won't fade into obscurity. NASA will send the shuttles to museums for display.

In its 30-year history since beginning in 1981, the Space Shuttle Program’s fleet — Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour — flew 135 missions, clocking in at a total of ...

NASA’s shuttle era began today in 1981 as the Columbia orbiter launched into the morning skies above Cape Canaveral. IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another ...

Retired Canadian Space Agency astronaut Marc Garneau describes the time he picked up a spinning satellite in space known as ...

Endeavour, the so-called jewel of the shuttle fleet that flew 25 missions in space, will be viewable from multiple platforms — including beneath the orbiter’s three main engines as well as ...

A political effort to relocate the space shuttle Discovery from the Smithsonian to Space Center Houston has been merged with the so-called "One Big Beautiful Bill," a major economic and policy package ...

NASA astronaut Mike Massimino smiles for a photo during STS-125 — the fifth and final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission flown by NASA's space shuttle fleet — in May 2009.

After 17 days in space, the Space Shuttle Columbia broke up during its return to Earth. The seven astronauts aboard all died: Rick D. Husband, William C. McCool, David M. Brown, Laurel Blair ...

When the spaceplane’s landing gear struck the runway on July 21, 2011, it marked the end of the line for the Space Shuttle. An incredible accomplishment in its own right, the shuttle project was ...

The shuttle Atlantis returned to Earth for the final time today (July 21), but the orbiter has one more mission left on its docket — teaching and inspiring the public as a museum showpiece.

(NASA retired its space shuttle fleet in 2011, so using one of the winged orbiters again is not an option.) Loss of institutional knowledge was also an issue; ...