On July 23, 1999, the space shuttle Columbia launched into orbit to deploy the Chandra X-ray Observatory.

This space telescope can detect X-ray radiation emitted by things in the universe that are hot and have a lot of energy, like supernova explosions and black holes.

When it launched, Chandra was the most sophisticated X-ray telescope ever built. But there’s another reason why this shuttle mission is considered a major milestone for NASA: STS-93 crewmember Eileen Collins also became the first woman to command the space shuttle on this flight.

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