February 5, 1970 --- Original caption: Sleek new space shuttle craft (foreground) proposed to carry men and 50,000-pound cargoes to space station in late 1970's was unveiled by North American Rockwell's (NR) Space Division, Downey, California. New space shuttle concept was disclosed with announcement that Space Division is teaming with the Convair Division of General Dynamics, San Diego, to compete for next generation space transportation system study contract. Bullet-like shuttle with delta-shaped wing and high tail is "orbiter" that carries men and cargo to space station. Shuttle system "booster" (in background) carries the orbiter to fringes of space, then drops away for landing on conventional runway for reuse. Shuttle craft and booster are shown here in North American Rockwell artist's concept. --- Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS