| Orbiter Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB)
External
Tank
The Space Transportation
System, commonly referred to as the Shuttle,
consists of the Orbiter,
the Solid
Rocket Boosters (SRB), and the External Tank. The Orbiter and SRBs are reusable.
The entire stack is 184 feet tall and weighs
approximately 4.5 million pounds.
The Space Shuttle is
launched in an upright position, with thrust
provided by the three Space Shuttle main engines
and the two SRBs. About 2 minutes after launch,
the two boosters are spent and separate from the
external tank. They fall into the ocean at
predetermined points and are recovered for reuse.
The Space Shuttle main
engines continue firing for about 8 minutes. They
shut down just before the craft is inserted into
orbit. The external tank then separates from the
orbiter. It follows a ballistic trajectory into a
remote area of the ocean but is not recovered.
The Shuttle inserts into
near Earth orbit between 100 and 217 nautical
miles (115 to 250 statute miles) above the Earth.
The orbiter's velocity on orbit is approximately
25,405 feet per second (17,322 statute miles per
hour).
The orbiter can carry a
flight crew of up to eight persons. A total of 10
persons could be carried under emergency
conditions. The crew compartment has a
shirtsleeve environment, and the acceleration
load is never greater than 3 Gs. The typical
mission is 7 days in space, but past missions
have lasted nearly 17 days.
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