Eighth Wonder: Remembering the Launch of Hubble, OTD in 1990

On this day in 1990, shuttle Discovery and five astronauts rocketed higher above the Home Planet than any humans since the end of the Apollo lunar landing era. By the time STS-31 Commander Loren Shriver, Pilot Charlie Bolden and Mission Specialists Steve Hawley, Kathy Sullivan and Bruce McCandless settled into orbit, they were soaring at an altitude of 380 miles (610 kilometers) and for the first time since Apollo it was possible to see the curvature of Earth and glimpse …