The Complete Book of Spaceflight: From Apollo 1 to Zero Gravity

is propelled by three Main Engines and 46 smaller
rocket engines in various combinations for liftoff, attitude
control in space, and initiating reentry. The
Orbiter can carry up to eight crew, including a mandatory
commander and pilot, and deploy and/or
retrieve payloads utilizing a 18.3 × 4.57 m cargo bay.
An array of standard payload platforms, including the
European Spacelab or commercial Spacehab modules,
have been carried into space and returned to
Earth at the end of a mission. An articulated arm
called the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) can
be operated by Shuttle astronauts from inside the
cabin and used to manipulate payloads out of or into
the payload bay.
The forward section of the Orbiter contains the
flight deck and crew quarters. During launch up to
four astronauts may sit on the upper flight deck and
up to four more on the middle crew quarters deck.
The forward portion of the flight deck resembles the
cockpit of a jet airliner but features separate controls
for flying in space and flying in the atmosphere. The
aft portion of the flight deck contains four stand-up
duty stations including the controls for the RMS. The
crew quarters deck, equipped with 10 windows, is
entered through an open hatch in the flight deck floor
and provides eating, sleeping, and sanitary facilities.
At the aft end of the crew quarters deck is an air lock,
through which astronauts can enter the cargo bay for
extravehicular activities.
Electrical power for the Orbiter systems comes
from fuel cells that produce water for drinking as a
byproduct.
Wingspan: 23.79 m
Length: 37.24 m
Height: 17.27 m
Habitable volume: 71.5 cubic m
Dry mass: 78,448 kg (82,288 kg in the case of
OV-102)
Landing mass: 104,328 kg max
Payload (to 204-km LEO): 24,990 kg (21,140 kg in
the case of OV-102)
Orbiter Discovery touches down on Runway 33 at the Shuttle Landing Facility, Kennedy Space Center on November 7,
1998. NASA
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