Amaya Toman One message for the Macintosh, a giant leap for technology. In the summer of 1991, the first email from space was sent from a Macintosh Portable with the help of AppleLink software. The message sent by the crew of space shuttle Atlantis contained a greeting to planet Earth from the crew of STS-43. “This is the first AppleLink from space. We're enjoying it here, wish you were here," said the email, which ended with the words "Hasta la vista, baby ... we'll be back!".
The primary mission of the STS-43 mission was to place the fourth TDRS (Tracking and Data Relay Satellite) system in space, used for tracking, telecommunications and other purposes. Among other things, the aforementioned Macintosh Portable was also on board the space shuttle Atlantis. It was the first "mobile" device from Apple's workshop and saw the light of day in 1989. For its operation in space, the Macintosh Portable required only a few modifications.
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During the flight, the shuttle crew attempted to test various components of the Macintosh Portable, including the built-in trackball and non-Apple optical mouse. AppleLink was an early online service originally used to connect Apple distributors. In space, AppleLink was supposed to provide a connection with Earth. The "space" Macintosh Portable also ran software that allowed the shuttle crew to track their current position in real time, compare it to a map of Earth showing the day and night cycles, and input the relevant information. The Macintosh on board the shuttle also acted as an alarm clock, notifying the crew that a particular experiment was about to be carried out.
But the Macintosh Portable wasn't the only Apple device to look into space in the space shuttle. The crew was equipped with a special edition WristMac watch - it was a kind of predecessor of the Apple Watch, capable of transferring data to a Mac using a serial port.
Apple remained connected to the universe for many years after the first email was sent. The Cupertino company's products have been present on a number of NASA space missions. For example, the iPod got into space, and recently we also saw a DJ set played on iPad in space.
The image of the iPod in space even made it into the book "Designed in California". But it was more or less a coincidence. A NASA image of an iPod on a dashboard was once discovered by former Apple chief designer Jony Ive.
Source: Cult of Mac
