Enterprise ( OV - 101 ) " Enterprise " ( OV - 101 ) was a 20th century NASA space shuttle orbiter operated by the United States of America on Earth . The " Enterprise " was the prototype space shuttle in NASA ' s Space Shuttle program . History . An artistic rendition of the space shuttle " Enterprise " was displayed in Jonathan Archer ' s ready room aboard , showing " Enterprise " in flight . ( ) It was also honored with a portrait on the refit ' s recreation deck in the mid - 2270s . ( ) A model of the International Space Station with the space shuttle " Enterprise " was on display in Benjamin Sisko ' s office on Deep Space 9 . ( ) " In 2259 of the alternate reality , a replica of this shuttle was on display in the office of Admiral at Starfleet Headquarters . " ( ) Appendices . Background information . " Enterprise " was a prototype / test vehicle for Earth ' s first reusable spacecraft , dubbed . She was used primarily to verify the performance of the Space Shuttle Orbiter design during final approach and landing and never flew in space . She was displayed in the Steven F . Udvar - Hazy Center of the Smithsonian Institution ' s National Air and Space Museum from December 2003 until April 2012 , and now makes its home at the " Intrepid " Sea , Air and Space Museum in New York City ; Leonard Nimoy , who befittingly came full circle , as he was also present at the unveil of the orbiter thirty - six years earlier , attended and spoke at the arrival ceremony . The first space shuttle was originally supposed to be named " Constitution " , in honor of the United States ' bicentennial celebrations in 1976 . However , a massive fan letter campaign organized by Bjo Trimble produced over 200 , 000 letters asking President to name the shuttle " Enterprise " after the " Star Trek " starship ( which , coincidentally , is ) instead . When the Enterprise was unveiled on 17 September , 1976 , at Rockwell ' s plant at Palmdale , California , " Star Trek " creator Gene Roddenberry and most of the principal cast of the were on hand at the highly publicized dedication ceremony as guests of honor in recognition of its fictional namesake . ( " " Starlog " " , issue 3 , p . 7 : , " et al . " ) Not invited for the event was the original designer of the fictional ship , Matt Jefferies , but he was present , invited by NASA as guest of honor , at the first free - flight test of the shuttle on 12 August 1977 . ( " " , pp . 285 - 286 ) As serendipity would have it , Jefferies , who was working on " " at the time , received a memo less than a month later , on 9 September 1977 , from Roddenberry who , inspired by a letter he had received from a fan , wrote , " " Some fans have suggested that our new " Enterprise " should carry a plaque somewhere which commemorates the fact it was named after the first space shuttle launched from Earth in the 1970 ' s . This is an intriguing idea . It also has publicity advantages if properly released at the right time . It won ' t hurt NASA ' s feelings either . I ' ll leave it to you where you want it on the vessel and who should design it . " " Jefferies , the accomplished aviation artist , needed no further enticement to create the artwork for the historical vessels named USS " Enterprise " , that served as the source for the backlit transparencies , including that of the OV - 101 , ultimately seen on the wall of the recreation deck in " Phase II " s successor , " Star Trek : The Motion Picture " . ( " " , p . 94 ) In the real world , " Enterprise " ( OV - 101 ) was not built to be spaceworthy , and was meant only for atmospheric tests , although NASA intended to upgrade the vehicle for space flight after the test program ended . However , changes to the final design and advances in materials technology in the interim made this too costly ; an existing structural test article was used instead to build the shuttle " Challenger " ( OV - 099 ) . " Enterprise " was again considered for modification after " Challenger " was lost , but it was cheaper and easier to build " Endeavour " ( OV - 105 ) out of structural spares . A model of a space shuttle docked with the International Space Station was given to the series as a gift by Majel Barrett - Roddenberry , where it served as a desktop model in Benjamin Sisko ' s office . The art department staff made one minor alteration on the model ; changing the name of the shuttle to bear that of the " Enterprise " , even though , as stated , that orbiter never made it into into space in real life . ( ) Footage of the shuttle " Enterprise " included in the montage of historic images shown during the for is actually one of the later shuttles with the name " Enterprise " digitally inserted . The footage shows the orbiter ' s name on the forward fuselage under the cockpit windows , where the operational shuttles had their names painted ; " Enterprise " had her name painted on the payload bay doors just above the hinge and behind the crew module , where it remains to this day . The Artisan prop and model shop of Quantum Mechanix , QMx FX Cinema Arts , was asked to illustrate the history of space flight with models for the film . They constructed fourteen models in total . On their website , along with a picture of the model of the " Enterprise " , there was this caption , " It ' s all well and good to send people up in rockets for brief periods , but to make Human habitation of space a reality , we needed a way to ferry crew and supplies to permanent orbital stations . The U . S . Space Shuttle supplied the solution to that challenge for more than two decades . It also has the distinction of having the first spaceship named " Enterprise " , which ironically never actually flew in space . " The mission patch for the " Enterprise " , along with other symbols , is displayed in the " Star Trek Encyclopedia " ( 4th ed . , vol . 2 , p . 350 ) . The patch was for the . The names of the astronaut s involved in this mission - , , , and - were identified on the patch by their last names . Apocrypha . The novel " A Flag Full of Stars " states that she instead was named for the World War Two aircraft carrier because the brother of one of the engineers who worked on her died serving aboard said ship , and that she was the last surviving space shuttle . She was refitted with impulse engines so she could participate in a parade of antique spacecraft celebrating the 300th anniversary of Apollo 11 .