Space Shuttle Challenger Space Shuttle Challenger Space Shuttle "Challenger" (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-099) was the second orbiter of NASA's space shuttle program to be put into service, after "Columbia". "Challenger" was built by Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division, in Downey, California. Its maiden flight, STS-6, began on April 4, 1983. The orbiter was launched and landed nine times before breaking apart 73 seconds into its tenth mission, STS-51-L, on January 28, 1986, resulting in the death of all seven crew members, including a civilian school teacher. It was the first of two shuttles to be destroyed in flight, the other being "Columbia",
International Space Station a storage module attached to the "Tranquility" node. The three NASA Space Shuttle MPLM cargo containers—"Leonardo", "Raffaello" and "Donatello"—were built for NASA in Turin, Italy by Alcatel Alenia Space, now Thales Alenia Space. The MPLMs were provided to NASA's ISS programme by Italy (independent of their role as a member state of ESA) and are considered to be US elements. In a bartered exchange for providing these containers, the US gave Italy research time aboard the ISS out of the US allotment in addition to that which Italy receives as a member of ESA. The Permanent Multipurpose Module was created