On September 17, 1976, NASA publicly unveiled the first orbiter of its Space Shuttle program, then designated OV-101. The event coincided with Constitution Day, a symbolic date in the nation’s bicentennial year.
The agency had initially intended to name the vehicle Constitution to honor the historical occasion. However, a large‑scale letter‑writing campaign prompted a change of plans.
Nearly 100,000 fans of the Star Trek television series wrote to the White House, urging that the orbiter be named after the fictional starship Enterprise. The public pressure resulted in the name Enterprise being adopted.
Enterprise was used solely for ground‑based and atmospheric test flights. It underwent vibration, launch and landing tests but never flew in space. Its test program provided essential data for the subsequent operational shuttles: Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour.