NASA space shuttle astronauts Tom Akers and Joe Tanner, who flew into orbit four times each, will be inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame.

Col. Eileen Collins was the first woman to pilot and command a NASA space shuttle. Collins commanded the first flight after the 2003 Columbia tragedy, which also experienced a foam-shedding issue.

The two solid rocket boosters flew in different directions as the external fuel tank became a fireball.(AP: Bruce Weaver / File) Forty years ago, the Challenger space shuttle disintegrated just after ...