The STS-118 mission, the first for Endeavour following a lengthy refit, included astronaut Barbara Morgan, formerly assigned to the Educator Astronaut program, but now a full member of the Astronaut Corps, as part of the crew. During this time, the Orbiter received major hardware upgrades, including a new, multi-functional, electronic display system, often referred to as glass cockpit, and an advanced GPS receiver, along with safety upgrades recommended by the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) for Shuttle return to flight after the disintegration of sister-ship Columbia during re-entry on February 1, 2003. In December 1998, it delivered the Unity Module to the International Space Station.Įndeavour as photographed from the International Space Station as it approached the station during STS-118.Įndeavour completed its latest Orbiter Major Modification period, which began in December 2003, and ended on October 6, 2005. Endeavour was withdrawn from service for eight months in 1997 for a retrofit, including installation of a new airlock. In 1993, it made the first service mission to the Hubble Space Telescope. On its first mission, it captured and redeployed the stranded INTELSAT VI communications satellite. Rockwell International claimed that it had made no profit on Space Shuttle Endeavour, despite construction costing US$2.2 billion. Įndeavour was delivered by Rockwell International in May 1991 and first launched a year later, in May 1992, on STS-49. This is why the name is spelled in the British English manner, rather than the American English spelling of "Endeavor." This has caused confusion, most notably when NASA themselves misspelled a sign on the launch pad in 2007. The orbiter is named after HM Bark Endeavour, the ship commanded by 18th century explorer James Cook the name also honored Endeavour, the Command Module of Apollo 15. They were honored at several ceremonies in Washington, D.C., including a White House ceremony where then-President George H.W. The national winners were selected based on the quality of the project submitted with their entries. The national winners were Senatobia Middle School in Senatobia, Mississippi, in the elementary division and Tallulah Falls School in Tallulah Falls, Georgia, in the upper school division. For example, Utah's state level winner, Nolan Butcher, a sixth grade student from Nibley Park Elementary school located in Salt Lake City Utah, selected Endeavour because some definitions of the word mean to be bold and put forth greatĮffort. Endeavour was the most popular entry, accounting for almost one-third of the state-level winners. Entries included an essay about the name, the story behind it and why it was appropriate for a NASA shuttle, and the project that supported the name. The decision to build Endeavour was favored over refitting Enterprise on cost grounds.Įndeavour was named through a national competition involving students in elementary and secondary schools. Structural spares from the construction of Discovery and Atlantis, two of the three remaining operating shuttles at the time, were used in its assembly. The United States Congress authorized the construction of Endeavour in 1987 to replace Challenger, which was lost in an accident in 1986.
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