News From Space!

Today is the 25th anniversary (12 April 1981) of the STS-1 (Shuttle Columbia) launch, the first Shuttle mission. Mission Fact sheet here; Crew info here; Image collections here and here; Special report here. STS-1 was the first spaceflight of the Shuttle, (the world's first reusable spacecraft), the first manned flight using solid-fueled rockets, and the first time a US spacecraft had flown with a crew aboard on its maiden flight (no unmanned tests for these guys!). Columbia, which launched on the 20th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's historic flight, would land 2 days later at Edwards AFB.