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In December 1993, the Shuttle rendezvoused with the Hubble SpaceTelescope, which had been launched with a misshapen primary mirror; the Shuttle crewwas able to install equipment on the telescope to correct this mistake and perform otherservicing tasks. Such feats, while demonstrating the utility and flexibility of the SpaceShuttle, were generally overshadowed by the Shuttle’s high operating costs, and NASAbegan gradually to focus more on the use of the Space Shuttle for use in constructing andoperating the International Space Station.The 1993 agreement between the Russian Federation and the United States to includeRussia as a partner in the International Space Station had a major effect on Space Shuttle’soperation during the 1990s.92 On one hand, Russia agreed to launch part of the station andto assist in resupply, reducing the burden on the Shuttle.

On the other hand, the UnitedStates agreed to place the station in a 51.6-degree orbit, which reduces the payload theShuttle can carry to an orbit with that high of an inclination. Furthermore, Russia and theUnited States agreed to a combined Shuttle-Mir program as a precursor to InternationalSpace Station’s construction. As NASA argued before Congress, this program would not onlygive NASA and the Russian Space Agency valuable experience in working together before thelaunch and assembly of the International Space Station, it would also test the Shuttle system’sability to reach a high orbit reliably with a tightly constrained launch window.The first Shuttle launch to the Russian space station Mir took place during June 1995on STS-71 (Figures 2–8, 2–9, and 2–10). On June 29, the Shuttle Atlantis docked with Mirto deliver two Russian cosmonauts and to return NASA astronaut Norman Thagard toEarth after 115 days aboard the Russian station.

The Shuttle-Mir program was completedwith STS-91 in June 1998 after nine successful dockings with Mir. On December 4, 1999,the Shuttle Endeavour (STS-88) launched the first component of the International SpaceStation into orbit, marking at long last the start of the Shuttle’s use for which it was primarily designed—transport to and from a permanently inhabited orbital space station.ConclusionAs the documents following this essay illustrate, the design of the Space Shuttle was acompromise among many technical and political considerations.

During its conception,right on through to its development and use, virtually every element of the Shuttle’s designand use was criticized by someone—sometimes for technical reasons, sometimes for itshigh costs, and sometimes for questionable NASA decisions. In retrospect, perhaps themost serious of the criticisms was that leveled at the set of policies that led to the attemptto require the use of the Space Shuttle for all U.S. space transportation needs.93Nevertheless, this compromise design, while expensive and complicated to operate, istoday the world’s most advanced and versatile launch system.

Although NASA and its contractors have explored numerous alternatives to launching human crews to and from space(see Chapter 4), none are likely to replace the Space Shuttle for at least another decade.92. U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, U.S.-Russian Cooperation in Space, OTA-ISS-618(Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, April 1995).93. Logsdon, “The Space Shuttle Program: A Policy Failure?”****EU4 Chap 2 (161-192)1924/2/0112:45 PMPage 192DEVELOPING THE SPACE SHUTTLEFigure 2–8. A member of the crew on the Russian space station Mir took this photo of the orbiter Atlantis over the southernAral Sea prior to rendezvous. With the payload doors open, the Spacelab science module and the docking mechanism can beseen on June 28, 1995. (NASA photo)Figure 2–9.

Taken the same day, this photo shows Atlantisapproaching the docking node on the Kristall module of theMir space station. (NASA photo).