# Why is the space shuttle Endeavour spelled in the British way? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 21, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339 "2012-09-21T00:04:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/1 "2012-09-21T00:04:18Z")
Just wondering. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/2 "2012-09-21T00:07:34Z")
It was named after the ship commanded by Captain Cook during his South Pacific explorations. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/3 "2012-09-21T00:10:53Z")
Aliens speak, and write, the Queen’s English, not that provincial Americanese. ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/4 "2012-09-21T00:22:34Z")
Because it is the only way it should be spelled and yeah the whole Captain Cook thing. ---
**Author:** ![core\_dump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dec6dc/32.png) [@core\_dump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/core_dump)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/5 "2012-09-21T00:29:51Z")
They spelled it that way because of the way the orbiter is oriented while in orbit: Bass ackwards. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/6 "2012-09-21T00:32:38Z")
Because they wanted it to spell ruovaedne backwards. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/7 "2012-09-21T00:39:37Z")
One accurate answer, and a string of lame jokes. Gotta love this place. ---
**Author:** ![core\_dump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dec6dc/32.png) [@core\_dump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/core_dump)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/8 "2012-09-21T00:48:56Z")
> [@Blake](#): > > One accurate answer, and a string of lame jokes. > > Gotta love this place. Once the correct answer is given, what point is there in repeating it? At the risk of making the string of lameness longer: If they hadn’t spelled it the way they did, Endeavour wouldn’t have been an anagram for “A Nude Rove”. [Cecil has addressed](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1042/has-anyone-ever-had-sex-in-space) such naughty topics but it seems he did not get to the bottom of things. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/9 "2012-09-21T00:57:44Z")
Y’all are the best. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/10 "2012-09-21T02:50:10Z")
It should be noted that _all_ of the space shuttles are named after water vessels that went on voyages of research. ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/11 "2012-09-21T03:05:55Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > It should be noted that _all_ of the space shuttles are named after water vessels that went on voyages of research. Except for the prototype _Enterprise_, which was named after a fictional space ship, which may or may not’ve been named after a water vessel. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/12 "2012-09-21T03:29:49Z")
Even _Enterprise_ was officially named after the water vessel; they just chose a water vessel that happened to conveniently also have a famous science fiction ship named after it. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/13 "2012-09-21T04:21:31Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Even _Enterprise_ was officially named after the water vessel; they just chose a water vessel that happened to conveniently also have a famous science fiction ship named after it. The _Space Beagle_ would have been better. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/14 "2012-09-21T04:47:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Even _Enterprise_ was officially named after the water vessel; Which one? [This NASA page](http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/shuttle/resources/orbiters/enterprise.html) only mentions the Star Trek connection. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/15 "2012-09-21T04:48:47Z")
The Enterprise in Star Trek was named after the nuclear wessel, so it’s all the same. ---
**Author:** ![Esox\_Lucius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Esox\_Lucius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esox_Lucius)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/16 "2012-09-21T08:49:36Z")
_“Come for accurate answers. Stay for the lame jokes.”_ ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/17 "2012-09-21T09:41:25Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > It should be noted that _all_ of the space shuttles are named after water vessels that went on voyages of research. Good job [HMS Cockchafer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Cockchafer_(1915)) wasn’t a survey ship, despite having the ideal name for an exploratory vessel. > [@Colibri](#): > > The _Space Beagle_ would have been better. We tried that name for a [space probe](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beagle_2), it didn’t end well. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2012, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/18 "2012-09-21T10:38:27Z")
> [@Alka\_Seltzer](#): > > Good job [HMS Cockchafer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Cockchafer_(1915)) wasn’t a survey ship, despite having the ideal name for an exploratory vessel. The linked Wikipedia entry includes this: “The rear admiral [of the Cockchafer] on the Yangtze decided that the matter would have to be settled by force.” Ouch! ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/19 "2012-09-22T18:50:07Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > Because they wanted it to spell ruovaedne backwards. Oh, so THAT’S what [that thing that flew over my house yesterday](http://framework.latimes.com/2012/09/19/endeavour-photos/#/2) was. Thanks for explaining. I was just looking in the opposite direction as all those people. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2012, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339/20 "2012-09-22T22:11:05Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > the Queen’s English She certainly is. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-the-space-shuttle-endeavour-spelled-in-the-british-way/635339.md?page=2)