In 1976, NASA's space shuttle Enterprise rolled out of the Palmdale manufacturing facilities and was greeted by NASA officials and cast members from the 'Star Trek' television series. From left to right they are: NASA Administrator Dr. James D. Fletcher; DeForest Kelley, who portrayed Dr. "Bones" McCoy on the series; George Takei (Mr. Sulu); James Doohan (Chief Engineer Montgomery "Scotty" Scott); Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura); Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock); series creator Gene Roddenberry; an unnamed NASA official; and, Walter Koenig (Ensign Pavel Chekov).
NASA's space shuttle Enterprise stands atop the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39A highlighted against the darkened Florida sky and a bright moon during testing of the high-intensity lighting system on June 2, 1980. The xenon lights would be used in launch preparations.
The test shuttle Enterprise made its first appearance mated to supportive propellant containers and boosters as it was rolled from the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center en route to the launch pad, some 3.5 miles away, on May 1, 1979. Enterprise underwent several weeks of fit and function checks on the pad in preparation for STS-1, on which its sister craft Columbia took astronauts John Young and Robert Crippen into space for a 54-hour test mission.
The first crew members for the Space Shuttle Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) are photographed at the Rockwell International Space Division's Orbiter Assembly Facility at Palmdale, California. The Shuttle Enterprise, named after the starship in the "Star Trek" TV show of the 1960s, is commanded by former Apollo 13 Lunar Module pilot, Fred Haise (left) with C. Gordon Fullerton as pilot.
The Orbiter 101 "Enterprise" rides "piggy-back" atop the NASA 747 carrier aircraft during the second free flight of the Shuttle Apporach and Landing Tests (ALTs) conducted on September 13, 1977 at Dryden Flight Research Center in Southern California. One chase plane can be seen in the left background, another appearing to be directly under the Boeing 747.
The space shuttle prototype Enterprise flies free after being released from NASA's 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft over Rogers Dry Lakebed during the second of five free flights carried out at the Dryden Flight Research Center, in Edwards, Calif., as part of the shuttle program's Approach and Landing Tests (ALT). The tests were conducted to verify aerodynamics and handling characteristics in preparation for orbital flights with the Space Shuttle Columbia, which began in April 1981.
Astronauts Joe H. Engle (looking down), commander, and Richard H. Truly (face partially obscured by Engle), pilot, are greeted by Rockwell technicians following egress from the Space Shuttle Orbiter 101 "Enterprise." They had just completed a five minute, 31-second unpowered free flight in the "Enterprise," the second of a series of such flights, conducted on September 13, 1977, at Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC) and Edwards Air Force Base in California.
The Space Shuttle prototype Enterprise flies free of NASA's 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) during one of five free flights carried out at the Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, California in 1977 as part of the Shuttle program's Approach and Landing Tests (ALT).
This scene was photographed when the NASA 747 carrier aircraft and five T-38 aircraft flew over the Shuttle Orbiter 101 "Enterprise" while it was parked on the runway at Edwards Air Force Base in Southern California. The Orbiter 101 had just completed a five-minute, 28-second unpowered mission during the second free flight of the Shuttle Approach and Landing Tests (ALT) conducted September 13, 1977 at the Dryden Flight Research Center.
An aerial view of NASA's orbiter Enterprise being hoisted into the Marshall Space Flight Center's Dynamic Test Stand for the Mated Vertical Ground Vibration test on Oct. 4, 1978. The test marked the first time ever that the entire Space Shuttle elements, an Orbiter, an External Tank (ET), and two Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB), were mated together. The purpose of the vibration tests was to verify that the Space Shuttle performed its launch configuration as predicted.
An overall view of Space Launch Complex Six. The space shuttle Enterprise, mated to an external tank and solid rocket boosters, is resting on the launch mount in a 1985 test.
A view of the NASA Orbiter OV-101 Enterprise on the launch tower as it would appear prior to launch. The pad check occurred in 1985.
A nighttime view of the space shuttle Enterprise, mated to an external tank and solid rocket boosters, resting on the launch mount next to the access tower at Space Launch Complex Six in 1985.
The Space Shuttle Enterprise in launch position on the Space Launch Complex (SLC) #6 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in 1985.
Space Shuttle Enterprise in launch position on the Space Launch Complex (SLC) #6, commonly known as "SLICK 6", during the ready-to-launch checks to verify launch procedures in 1985.
Thousands of Britons surround the Space Shuttle Orbiter Enterprise at Stansted Airport, near London. The Enterprise atop its 747 carrier aircraft was viewed in London, Bonn-Cologne, West Germany, Rome and Ottawa, Canada, in addition to being shown at the Paris Air Show in June 1983.
The Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum was the original museum home of space shuttle Enterprise. The shuttle will eventually move to New York City and be replaced at the Smithsonian by Discovery.
Display concepts for retired space shuttles. Top row, from left to right: Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Florida; Adler Planetarium, Chicago, Ill.; Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, New York. Middle row: National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, Dayton, Ohio; National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, Chantilly, Va.; Tulsa Air and Space Museum, Oklahoma. Bottom row: Space Center Houston, Texas; U.S. Space & Rocket Center, Huntsville, Ala.; The Museum of Flight, Seattle, Wash. For more, see collectSPACE.com’s: How To Display a Retired Space Shuttle
Move over Enterprise: the orbiter on display at the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia may be replaced by another space shuttle.
New York City’s Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum's revised concept art surrounds the space shuttle with platforms and exhibits.
SPACE.com reporter Clara Moskowitz visited Space Shuttle Enterprise on its final day at the Smithsonian in Virginia, April 19, 2012.
SPACE.com reporter Clara Moskowitz visited Space Shuttle Enterprise on its final day at the Smithsonian in Virginia, April 19, 2012.
SPACE.com reporter Clara Moskowitz visited Space Shuttle Enterprise on its final day at the Smithsonian in Virginia, April 19, 2012.
Space Shuttle Enterprise rolls from the Space Hangar at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center prior to a transfer ceremony, Thursday, April 19, 2012, in Chantilly, Va.
Space Shuttle Enterprise is prepared to be rolled from the Space Hangar at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center prior to a transfer ceremony, Thursday, April 19, 2012, in Chantilly, Va.
The space shuttle Enterprise is seen mated on top of the NASA’s Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), a modified Boeing 747 jumbo jet, at Washington Dulles International Airport on Saturday, April 21, 2012.
The space shuttle Enterprise is seen in silhouette after it was mated on top of the NASA 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) at Washington Dulles International Airport, Friday, April 20, 2012, in Sterling, Va.
