Orbiting Space: How A Space Shuttle Works

The shiny ceramic body of the space shuttle glistens as the rays of the sun fall on it. It is already on the launch pad.

The thrusters start to fire, as the space rocket gears up for its much-awaited launch.

You might have heard of space shuttles like Endeavour, Columbia, Enterprise, and others.

You might also wonder what makes these space shuttles so efficient that they can orbit the wonders of space.

How does a space shuttle even work? What makes it float seamlessly in space? What are its components? 

The Major Parts Of A Space Shuttle

A spacecraft or a space shuttle has some major components that it cannot function without:

a. Two solid rocket boosters (SRB)- which are important for the launch of the space shuttle.

The solid rocket boosters are the thrusters for the space shuttle program. 

b. External Fuel Tank (ET)- This holds the fuel for the launch

c. Orbiter-The home of the astronauts, the orbiter carries the astronauts and the payload.

The Space Shuttle Route 

If the space shuttle is launched from the space station, a flight path is also charted out by the space scientists and engineers: 

Reaching the Orbit- The shuttle has to lift off the launching pad and head off to orbit

a. Orbit- The gorgeous space opens up once it reaches orbit

b. Re-entry- Its journey back to earth

c. Landing- Back to home sweet home- Earth 

A usual NASA space shuttle mission lasts for seven or eight days. But it can extend by 14 days.  

The Orbiter Of The Space Shuttle

As you launch into space, the space shuttle's orbiter is where you will live.

The orbiter has doors and cargo bays that you can customize according to the view you want.

You can stare at Earth or away from it depending on your preference.

The space shuttle’s orbiter has a crew compartment, where you will live like an astronaut. It has three decks:
 
a. Flight deck- It consists of the controls and water systems of the space shuttle. It also has seats for the pilot and other crew members

b. Mid Deck-This area is made of sleeping bunks, toilets, stowage compartment, airlock, and exercise equipment.

c. Lower Deck- This has the life support equipment, electrical systems, and other parts of the orbiter of the space shuttle. 

The Environment Inside the Space Shuttle 

A space shuttle needs to support life, so it needs to have an environment similar to Earth.

It has to have air, food, water, and a liveable temperature.

The rocket shuttle has to have a mixture of gases to replicate the atmosphere on earth- 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and one percent of other gases.

The pressures need to be maintained at 14 lbs/in the square.

To achieve this, the orbiter of the space shuttle has liquid oxygen
and liquid nitrogen in two different tanks.

The cabin pressure system combines these gases to clone the atmosphere one finds on earth.  

There are five loops of fans that circulate this atmosphere in the space shuttle.

A lot of technical processes and chemical reactions happen to make life on an orbiter work in a space shuttle. This way the rocket works in space.

a. There are chemical carbon dioxide canisters that take off carbon dioxide as it reacts with lithium hydroxide. 

b. Filters and charcoal canisters dispose of trace odors, dust, and other chemicals.

c. The cabin heat exchanger cools the air and condenses the moisture.

A space shuttle also needs to have water. Water is made of liquid oxygen and hydrogen in the spacecraft's fuel cells.

There are a complex set of machines that enable water to be made. 

The orbiter also cannot have waste piling up.

While certain wastes are stored in garbage bags and put in the lower deck, solid waste from the toilet is compacted, dried, and stored in bags.

It is disposed of on the Earth after burning.

The liquid waste goes to the wastewater tank of the spacecraft.

How Does A Space Shuttle Fly 

The space shuttle usually moves in a single straight direction. To change its direction you need to use the Reaction Control system. 

a. The RCS has 14 jets that allow the orbiter to move along the axis of rotation.

To do this the RCS uses monomethyl fuel to react with competent nitrogen.

b. The Orbit maneuvering System (OMS) needs to be on to change orbits.

These engines help in changing the velocity of the space shuttle. 
 
The way a space shuttle flies is actually through computers.

The pilots who are well versed with the technology, and have years of work experience, fly the shuttle.

The shuttles also have a Multifunctional Electronic Display Subsystem.

This is also known as the glass cockpit as it shows graphics of important indicators like altitude and speed.  

Return To Earth 

Now, while a computer and a set of chemical reactions make a space shuttle work in space, the return of the space shuttle to the Earth is quite crucial.

The process is not easy.  

a. The Orbiter of the space shuttle should first be in a proper position. This is essential to have a safe landing.

When the mission is over and the shuttle is across the world from the landing site (Kennedy Space Center in the USA is one such landing site) the mission control then tells the command to come home.

b. Close cargo doors. They need to switch on the RCS thrusters to get the orbiter of a space shuttle in position

c. The crew then needs to fire the OMS engines to decrease the speed of the orbiter so that it falls towards the earth slowly.

The shuttle takes roughly 25 minutes to reach the upper atmosphere. 

d. In the end, the remaining fuel is used; the orbiter has to penetrate the atmosphere of the earth to have a safe re-entry.

e. As the space shuttle is moving at 28,000 km/h the orbiter tends to hit air molecules which leads to a build-up of heat and friction.

 Hence, the space shuttle needs thermal protection due to the hot gases.

The space shuttle is thus made of ceramic insulating materials.

This protects it from the heat. It is the heat shield or thermal protection. 

f. During the re-entry, the steering jets help in keeping the space shuttle at a 40-degree attitude.

The ionized gases in the atmosphere around the orbiter also jam any radio communication for 12 minutes- this is also called an ionization blackout.

g. Once the re-entry is done, the orbiter then has to deal with the main air of the atmosphere.

In this phase, the shuttle can fly like an airplane. The flight computers help in flying the space shuttle now.

h. The commander then has to maneuver the space shuttle.

As the shuttle is 40 km away from the landing site, the shuttle’s computers give control to the commander.

This is where it is all on the commander and his space shuttle.

The Landing Path Of the Space Shuttle

When the orbiter of the space shuttle is 2000 feet above the ground, at that point the commander pulls up the nose to slow the rate of descent.

The pilot then uses the landing gear to allow the orbiter to touch down.

The commander softly ranks the orbiter.

A parachute is then deployed from the tail of the shuttle to stop the orbiter to the space shuttle.  

The Final Touchdown  

The process isn’t completely over as the space shuttle touches down, and it is back home.

The crew has to follow shutdown procedures.

This takes roughly 20 minutes.

The space shuttle has to go through cooling.

The space shuttle is then shut down, and the crew can exit the vehicle.

Then the ground crews start to service the space shuttle. 

A space shuttle has a set of complex mechanisms that all need to work properly for it to effectively work.

However, what is more, important is that the commanders and engineers understand the controls and technology to help it float through space and back without a hitch.

Such a level of understanding needs years of study and work experience.