The first launch of the space shuttle occurred on April 12, 1981, when Columbia, with astronauts commander John Young, and pilot Robert Crippen lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center. Photographers, film and television crews and journalists swarmed to witness the historic event. About 600 thousand spectators flocked to the coastal area to watch the lift-off. If successful, the shuttle project would be the backbone of the US space program and bring forward projects such as the international space station
Notes
Previously released on DVD
Title from resource description page (viewed Sept. 1, 2011)
