Into the Black, The Extraordinary Untold Story of the First Flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia and the Astronauts Who Flew Her

White, Rowland

Published by Bantam Books, London - Toronto - Sydney - Auckland -Johannesburg, 2016

About this Item

First Edition - - TO GO WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE. - On 12 April 1981 a revolutionary new spacecraft blasted off from Florida on her maiden flight. NASA's Space Shuttle Columbia was the most advanced flying machine ever built, a winged rocket plane the size of a commercial airliner, capable of flying to space - and back. She was the world's first real spaceship. - On board were men with the Right Stuff. They had worked on the Shuttle's development for a decade. Never before had a crew been so well prepared for their mission. Yet less than an hour after their spectacular departure from the Cape it was clear that something was wrong. Tiles designed to protect Columbia from the blowtorch burn of re-entry were missing from the heatshield. If the damage to their ship was too great the astronauts would be unable to return safely to earth. But neither they nor Mission Control possessed any way of knowing. - To save Columbia, NASA had to turn to the National Reconnaissance Office, a spy agency hidden deep inside the Pentagon whose very existence was classified. The NRO needed to attempt something that had never been done before. Success would require skill, pinpoint timing and a massive dose of luck. - Drawing on brand-new Interviews with astronauts, designers and engineers, archive material and newly declassified documents, Rowland White, bestselling author of Vulcan 607, has pieced together the dramatic untold story of the mission for the first time. Into the Black is an extraordinary race-against-time thriller, a gripping high-stakes Cold-War story and a celebration of humankind's love affair with the stars. 436 p. many color photos. Seller Inventory # 16414

Bibliographic Details

Title: Into the Black, The Extraordinary Untold ...

Publisher: Bantam Books, London - Toronto - Sydney - Auckland -Johannesburg

Publication Date: 2016

Binding: Hardcover with dust jacket

Condition: excellent condition

Edition: 1st Edition