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Author
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Topic: Photo of the week 604 (May 21, 2016)
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heng44
Member Posts: 3387
From: Netherlands
Registered: Nov 2001
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posted 05-21-2016 02:45 AM
   
 Exactly 40 years ago Space Shuttle Orbiter 101 was under construction at the Rockwell facility in Palmdale, California. The vehicle would be named Enterprise when it was rolled out on September 17, 1976. |
capcom
Member Posts: 17
From: staffordshire England
Registered: May 2016
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posted 05-21-2016 03:03 AM
Good photograph, it's sad this vehicle never made it into space. |
moorouge
Member Posts: 2454
From: U.K.
Registered: Jul 2009
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posted 05-21-2016 07:58 AM
But it did make it to Stansted Airport.  |
capcom
Member Posts: 17
From: staffordshire England
Registered: May 2016
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posted 05-21-2016 09:32 AM
That's very true and I missed it. |
randy
Member Posts: 2176
From: West Jordan, Utah USA
Registered: Dec 1999
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posted 05-21-2016 10:12 AM
It made many contributions to the shuttle program as a test bed. I would still like to see it someday. |
328KF
Member Posts: 1234
From:
Registered: Apr 2008
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posted 05-21-2016 10:43 AM
Having seen the SCA flying with an orbiter on top, the thought of not only stacking Enterprise on top of a 747, but releasing it in flight must have seemed insane at the time. I have a few signed items from the ALT program, and I still find it to be a facinating part of shuttle history. |
AstronautBrian
Member Posts: 287
From: Louisiana
Registered: Jan 2006
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posted 05-21-2016 08:35 PM
I remember the Enterprise was on display at the 1984 World's Fair in New Orleans. On the flight in, the 747 carrying Enterprise made a few circles over downtown Baton Rouge. It was a neat thing to see. I have a picture of it somewhere in New Orleans; I'll have to see if I can dig it up the next time I visit the parents. |
Rick Mulheirn
Member Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001
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posted 05-22-2016 04:23 AM
I was fortunate to be at Stansted the day Enterprise paid the UK a visit. The photos do not give a true sense of scale for the whole assembly. The chap just off camera on the bottom photo is showing a group of school children the typical location for an astronaut's head.  
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Philip
Member Posts: 5952
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jan 2001
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posted 05-22-2016 09:43 AM
And four decades later some get excited about an External Tank on the move... Sad times.  |
Robert Pearlman
Editor Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999
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posted 05-22-2016 10:03 AM
Why should it bad sad to see an external tank on the move? That certainly wasn't the atmosphere along the route yesterday. Thousands of people turned out to see the tank pass by their homes, by their places of business or at scenic locations along the way. They got to meet astronauts, learn about the history of the space shuttle program and be reminded of the great facility they have in their city, the California Science Center. |
Ronpur
Member Posts: 1211
From: Brandon, Fl
Registered: May 2012
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posted 05-22-2016 11:17 PM
At this point in construction, wasn't it still planned to be named Constitution? I have always wondered if that name was started to be painted. I have never seen photos of Enterprise being painted on, but it must have been done almost within days of the rollout. |
Fra Mauro
Member Posts: 1587
From: Bethpage, N.Y.
Registered: Jul 2002
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posted 05-23-2016 09:16 AM
Better to see the ET "on the move", then being scrapped. I do understand the nostalgic feelings that some people might have. |
robsouth
Member Posts: 769
From: West Midlands, UK
Registered: Jun 2005
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posted 05-24-2016 05:01 AM
I still don't know why the real shuttles didn't go with the laser gun sticking out of the nosecone heatshield. |
Cozmosis22
Member Posts: 968
From: Texas * Earth
Registered: Apr 2011
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posted 05-24-2016 01:14 PM
Philip, would venture to guess that our sadness comes in the difference between "a brisk walking pace" and Mach 25. |
OV-105
Member Posts: 816
From: Ridgecrest, CA
Registered: Sep 2000
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posted 05-24-2016 09:21 PM
quote:
Originally posted by robsouth:
I still don't know why the real shuttles didn't go with the laser gun sticking out of the nosecone heatshield.
It was the laser gun or the galley. NASA went with the galley since the astronauts like to eat. |
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