How do they load the Space Shuttle?

To load the shuttle onto the jet, NASA uses a giant gantry-like machine called the Mate-Demate device. This contraption uses two 100-foot steel towers with a massive lift beam in between them to hoist the orbiter off the ground.

How much does a Space Shuttle weigh at takeoff?

4.5 million pounds
The height of the full shuttle stack, including the external fuel tank, is 184.2 feet. Gross weight is 4.5 million pounds at liftoff. That’s almost four times as weighty as the heaviest airplane ever built, the 1.2-million-pound Russian An-225 airplane.

How much did the Space Shuttle weigh fully loaded?

4.4 million pounds
The entire shuttle vehicle, fully loaded, weighed about 2 million kg (4.4 million pounds) and required a combined thrust of about 35 million newtons (7.8 million pounds-force) to reach orbital altitude.

Why does the Space Shuttle weigh so much?

The 2 solid rocket boosters have the capacity to hold over 1 million pounds of fuel each. The orbital that breaks away from these rocket boosters and external tank, and then goes into orbit and returns to earth, weighs almost 200,000 pounds, which is about the weight of a Blue Whale.

How heavy is a space suit?

approximately 280 pounds
A spacesuit weighs approximately 280 pounds on the ground – without the astronaut in it. In the microgravity environment of space, a spacesuit weighs nothing. Putting on a spacesuit takes 45 minutes, including the time it takes to put on the special undergarments that help keep astronauts cool.

What fuel does space shuttle use?

liquid hydrogen
The Space Shuttle’s large External Tank is loaded with more than 500,000 gallons of super-cold liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, which are mixed and burned together to form the fuel for the orbiter’s three main rocket engines.

What is the weight of fuel in a space shuttle?

1,607,185 pounds
Their total weight is 1,607,185 pounds. The external tank of the shuttle carries about 384,071 gallons (227,800 pounds) of liquid hydrogen, but about 628,540 gal- lons (372,800 pounds) are used in all during shuttle vehicle loading.

What fuel does Space Shuttle use?