| Click on the thumbnails below to access a high-resolution version of the image:
 | The first orbital mission of the Space Transportation System lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center on April 12, 1981. |
 | The roar of the Space Shuttle's engines breaks the calm of the Florida coast during the liftoff of STS-1. |
 | Columbia roars to life from Pad 39A on April 12, 1981. |
 | The Space Shuttle's engines propel a massive cloud of exhaust hundreds of feet into the air during liftoff. |
 | The Shuttle's recognizable, orange external fuel tank is seen here painted white. The coating was used for the first two missions into space, but later dropped to save weight. |
 | STS-1 soars into space on April 12, 1981. |
 | A pre-launch Columbia on the crawler transporter, making its way from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center. |
 | Young and Crippen during training on the orbiter's flight deck. |
 | A dramatic evening photo of Columbia sitting on the pad at Kennedy Space Center. |
 | Dr. Alan M. Lovelace, acting administrator of NASA, presents Vice President George H.W. Bush with a model of the Space Shuttle during the vice president's visit to the Kennedy Space Center. |
 | Young and Crippen practice using a slidewire basket system designed to get astronauts away from the pad quickly during an emergency. |
 | Before a failed launch attempt on April 10, 1981, Young and Crippen are suited up for launch at the Kennedy Space Center's Operations and Checkout Building. |
 | Commander Young receives final touches to his suit prior to an aborted launch attempt on April 10, 1981. |
 | Young is followed by Crippen as the two men make their way from the Operations and Checkout Building to Pad 39A on April 12, 1981. |
 | In this official STS-1 mission photo, astronauts Young and Crippen pose with a model of the orbiter. |
 | While on the mid-deck, Crippen floats effortlessly in the microgravity of space. |
 | Crippen takes a meal break on Columbia's mid-deck. |
 | Young opens a storage container on the mid-deck while Columbia orbits Earth. |
 | The Shuttle's Solid Rocket Boosters break away from Columbia's External Tank and fall to Earth about two minutes after liftoff. The boosters were collected and used in later missions. |
 | Columbia seen in flight moments before touchdown at Edwards Air Force Base on April 14, 1981. |
 | The orbiter receives post-landing servicing following STS-1's successful touchdown at Edwards Air Force Base. |
 | The mission patch for STS-1, the first Shuttle mission to fly in space. |
| Further NASA image resources: |
| http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/BROWSE/space-shuttle_1.html |
| A collection of Space Shuttle images from the Great Images in NASA (GRIN) database. Also use this site to access more famous or historically significant images from NASA. |
| http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/gallery/images/shuttle/index.html |
| NASA’s Human Space Flight Space Shuttle gallery, with an extensive compilation of Shuttle photos and videos. |
| http://nix.nasa.gov/ |
| The NASA Image Exchange, a comprehensive database with images from a number of time periods and NASA Field Centers. |
| http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/index.cfm |
| The Kennedy Space Center's Multimedia Archive, a fully searchable collection of KSC photos and videos. |
