– could the space shuttle just fly into space like a plane, rather than being propelled vertically by rockets?

Question

– could the space shuttle just fly into space like a plane, rather than being propelled vertically by rockets?

In: 48

Answer 1

No. It’s wings wouldn’t generate enough lift to get it to space. The wings are too small and the higher you get the less air so it would also not produce enough lift even if it had larger wings.

The reason it has wings is to enable it to land safely like an airplane, but at that point it’s doing a kind of “controlled fall” so it doesn’t need as much lift. Just enough to prevent it from “falling” into the ground too rapidly.