45 years ago, NASA's first Space Shuttle only went five miles up — and changed spaceflight forever - Inverse

Strapped on a Boeing 747, the historic flight paved the way for everything to come.

On August 12, 1977, NASA entered a new era with the launch of the Enterprise, a space shuttle prototype that never actually reached space. But despite falling short of even cruising altitude in a com… [+10265 chars]

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