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The Space Shuttle design was remarkable. The idea of “wings in orbit” took concrete shape in the brilliant minds of NASA engineers, and the result was the most innovative, elegant, versatile, and highly functional vehicle of its time. The shuttle was indeed an engineering marvel on many counts. Accomplishing these feats required the design of a very complex system. In several ways, the shuttle combined unique attributes not witnessed in spacecraft of an earlier era. The shuttle was capable of launching like a rocket, reentering Earth’s atmosphere like a capsule, and flying like a glider for a runway landing. It could rendezvous and dock precisely, and serve as a platform for scientific research within a range of disciplines that included biotechnology and radar mapping. The shuttle also performed satellite launches and repairs, bestowing an almost “perpetual youth” upon the Hubble Space Telescope through refurbishments. The most impressive product that resulted from the shuttle’s capabilities and contributions is the International Space Station—a massive engineering assembly and construction undertaking in space. No other crewed spacecraft to date has replicated these capabilities. The shuttle has left an indelible mark on our society and culture, and will remain an icon of space exploration for decades to come.