Aerospace: Planning Space Shuttle's maiden voyage: In a matter of months space-oriented experiments will soar aloft aboard the Columbia

A quantum leap toward mankind's use of space as a natural resource begins with the first orbital flight of the Space Shuttle. The test flight, now scheduled for early next year, will mark the first time a satellite was orbited without use of an expendable booster. As future flights unfold — and 500 are planned in the first 12 years — the Shuttle will give the world routine, round-trip access to space. Capable of flying both in air and space, the Shuttle represents the highest technical achievement of the U.S. space program.