The first launch of the Space Shuttle occurred on April 12, 1981, exactly 20 years after the first crewed space flight, when the orbiter Columbia lifted off from Pad A, Launch Complex 39, at the Kennedy Space Center. The launch took place at 12:00:04 UTC.

Operational missions launched numerous satellites, conducted science experiments in orbit, and participated in construction and servicing of the International Space Station (ISS). The first of four orbital test flights occurred in 1981, leading to operational flights beginning in 1982.

2013年4月12日 · Twenty years prior to the historic launch, on April 12, 1961, the era of human spaceflight began when Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to orbit the Earth in his Vostock I spacecraft. The flight lasted 108 minutes.

2023年7月7日 · S79-31775 (29 April 1979) — These two astronauts are the prime crewmen for the first flight in the Space Transportation System (STS-1) program. Astronauts John W. Young, left, commander, and Robert L. Crippen, pilot, will man the space shuttle orbiter 102 Columbia for the first orbital flight test.

The Space Shuttle was the first operational orbital spacecraft designed for reuse. Each Space Shuttle orbiter was designed for a projected lifespan of 100 launches or ten years of operational life, although this was later extended.

2011年4月12日 · STS-1 was the first orbital flight of NASA's Space Shuttle, launched on 12 April 1981, and returning to Earth 14 April. Space Shuttle Columbia orbited the Earth 37 times in this 54.5-hour...

1981年4月12日 · In the early morning hours of April 12, 1981, NASA launched is first Space Transportation System, or space shuttle, mission, carrying astronauts John Young and Robert Crippen into orbit. Mission Commander John Youn had already flown in space four times, including a walk on the Moon in 1972.