It's August 12, maybe you or somebody you know has a birthday -- and on this day in 1977, the space shuttle Enterprise made its first free flight.

U.S. Air Force/Tech. Sgt. James R Pearson

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

Originally planned to be named Constitution, the shuttle became Enterprise only after an intense letter-writing campaign from devoted Trekkies numbering in the hundreds of thousands.

So HAPPY BIRTHDAY to one and all, and to Enterprise, which had a badass crew attend its rollout.

Support your favorite Cracked writers with a visit to our Contribution Page. Please and thank you.

For more, check out 6 Reasons Space Travel Will Always Suck and 5 Things Movies Always Get Wrong About Space.

Look! Our Facebook page. For yoooouuu!