instance_of sts-55
The ___MASK10___ program , officially called the Space Transportation System ( STS ), was the United States government ' s manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011 , administered by NASA and officially beginning in 1972 . The ___MASK10___ system  composed of an orbiter launched with two reusable solid rocket boosters and a disposable external fuel tank  carried up to eight astronauts and up to of payload into low Earth orbit ( LEO ). When its mission was complete , the orbiter would re - enter the Earth ' s atmosphere and land like a glider at either the Kennedy Space Center or Edwards Air Force ___MASK51___ . A ___MASK93___ is a ___MASK24___ , or machine designed to fly in outer space . Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes , including communications , earth observation , meteorology , navigation , space colonization , planetary exploration , and transportation of humans and cargo . The National Aeronautics and ___MASK60___ ___MASK44___ ( NASA ) is an independent agency of the ___MASK7___ of the United States ___MASK1___ responsible for the civilian space program as well as aeronautics and aerospace research . The John F . Kennedy ___MASK60___ Center ( KSC ) is one of ___MASK40___ National Aeronautics and ___MASK60___ Administration ___MASK64___ centers . Since ___MASK45___ 1968 , Kennedy ___MASK60___ Center has been NASA ' s primary launch center of ___MASK8___ . Launch operations for the Apollo , Skylab and ___MASK60___ Shuttle programs were carried out from Kennedy ___MASK60___ Center Launch Complex 39 and managed by KSC . Located on the east coast of Florida , KSC is adjacent to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station ( CCAFS ). The management of the two entities work very closely together , share resources , and even own facilities on each other ' s property . Spacelab was a reusable ___MASK28___ used on certain spaceflights flown by the ___MASK10___ . The ___MASK28___ comprised multiple components , including a pressurized module , an unpressurized carrier and other related hardware housed in the Shuttle ' s cargo ___MASK91___ . The components were arranged in various configurations to meet the needs of each spaceflight . A low Earth ___MASK57___ ( LEO ) is an ___MASK57___ around Earth with an altitude between ( orbital ___MASK18___ of about 88 minutes ), and ( about 127 minutes ). Objects below approximately ___MASK73___ experience very rapid orbital decay and altitude loss . The ___MASK10___ was a partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated by the U . S . National Aeronautics and Space Administration ( NASA ), as part of the ___MASK10___ program . Its official program name was " Space Transportation System ( STS )", taken from a 1969 plan for a system of reusable spacecraft of which it was the only item funded for development . The first of four orbital test flights occurred in 1981 , leading to operational flights beginning in 1982 . Five complete Shuttle systems were built and used on a total of 135 missions from 1981 to 2011 , launched from the Kennedy Space Center ( KSC ) in Florida . Operational missions launched numerous satellites , interplanetary probes , and the Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ); conducted science experiments in orbit ; and participated in construction and servicing of the International Space Station . The Shuttle fleet ' s total mission time was 1322 days , 19 hours , 21 minutes and 23 seconds . STS - 55 ( ___MASK60___ Transportation ___MASK74___ 55 ) , or D - 2 was the 55th overall flight of the US ___MASK10___ and the 14th flight of Shuttle Columbia . This flight was a multinational Spacelab flight involving 88 experiments from eleven different nations . The experiments ranged from biology sciences to simple earth observations . The Hubble ___MASK60___ ___MASK27___ ( HST ) is a space ___MASK27___ that was launched into low Earth orbit in 1990 , and remains in operation . Although not the first space ___MASK27___ , Hubble is one of the largest and most versatile , and is well known as both a vital research tool and a ___MASK66___ relations boon for astronomy . The HST is named after the astronomer Edwin Hubble , and is one of NASA ' s Great Observatories , along with the Compton Gamma Ray ___MASK3___ , the Chandra X - ray ___MASK3___ , and the Spitzer ___MASK60___ ___MASK27___ . The International ___MASK60___ ___MASK70___ ( ISS ) is a space ___MASK70___ , or a habitable artificial satellite , in low Earth orbit . Its first component launched into orbit in 1998 , and the ISS is now the largest artificial body in orbit and can often be seen with the naked eye from Earth . The ISS consists of pressurised modules , external trusses , solar arrays , and other components . ISS components have been launched by Russian Proton and Soyuz rockets , and American ___MASK60___ Shuttles . ___MASK60___ is the boundless ___MASK46___ - dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction . Physical space is often conceived in ___MASK46___ linear dimensions , although modern physicists usually consider it , with ___MASK29___ , to be part of a boundless four - dimensional continuum known as spacetime . The concept of space is considered to be of fundamental importance to an understanding of the physical universe . However , disagreement continues between philosophers over whether it is itself an entity , a relationship between entities , or part of a conceptual framework . ___MASK39___ ( also written space flight ) is ballistic flight into or through outer space . ___MASK39___ can occur with spacecraft with or without humans on board . Examples of ___MASK8___ include the U . S . Apollo Moon landing and Space Shuttle programs and the Russian Soyuz program , as well as the ongoing International Space Station . Examples of unmanned spaceflight include space probes that leave Earth orbit , as well as satellites in orbit around Earth , such as communications satellites . These operate either by telerobotic control or are fully autonomous . The ___MASK60___ Transportation ___MASK74___ ( STS ), also known internally to NASA as the Integrated Program Plan ( IPP ), was a proposed ___MASK74___ of reusable manned space vehicles envisioned in 1969 to support extended operations beyond the Apollo program . ( NASA appropriated the name for its ___MASK10___ Program , the only component of the proposal to survive Congressional funding approval .) The purpose of the ___MASK74___ was twofold : to reduce the cost of spaceflight by replacing the current method of launching capsules on expendable rockets with reusable spacecraft ; and to support ambitious follow - on programs including permanent orbiting space stations around the Earth and Moon , and a human landing mission to Mars .