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The Question
(Submitted November 15, 1997)
What is the altitude at which the Space Shuttle orbits?
The Answer
The altitude at which the shuttle orbits depends on its mission. When the
Shuttle docks with Mir, it goes up to 390 km (242 statute miles).
Columbia, the oldest and heaviest shuttle in the fleet, can't reach that
orbit.
David Palmer
for Ask a High-Energy Astronomer
Questions on this topic are no longer responded to by the "Ask a
High-Energy Astronomer" service. See http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/ask_an_astronomer.html
for help on other astronomy Q&A services.
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