- Missions (6)
- Challenger (STA-099, OV-99) Background Challenger, the second orbiter to become operational at Kennedy Space Center, was named after the British Naval research vessel HMS Challenger that sailed the Atlantic and Pacific oceans during the 1870's. The Apollo 17 lunar module also carried the name of Challenger. Like her historic predecessors, Space Shuttle Challenger and her crews made significant ...science.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/resources/orbiters/challenger.html