1984: Shuttle astronauts retrieve the malfunctioning Solar Max astronomy satellite, fix it and send it back into orbit. It’s the first time a satellite has been repaired in space. The Solar Maximum mission had been launched Feb. 14, 1980. But it was having trouble with its altitude-control system, and the electronics in the coronagraph instrument […]

1972: President Richard M. Nixon announces that NASA will develop a space shuttle system, touting its reliability, reusability and low cost. See Also: Photo GalleryNASA: 50 Years of Towering Achievement The Mercury and Gemini programs had put Americans into Earth orbit. Apollo had been to the moon seven times — landing four times — and […]