Portal:Spaceflight/Did you know/2008 Fortnight 8

...that engineers claim the Ares I rocket (pictured) would be more aerodynamically stable if flying backwards than in the normal direction?
...that STS-80, a mission flown by the Space Shuttle Columbia, lasted 17 days, 15 hours, 53 minutes and 18 seconds, making it the longest Shuttle mission to date?
...that the Ocean Odyssey launch platform, used by Sea Launch, was originally built as an oil rig?