Which space shuttle carried the first Spacelab module?

Columbia carried the first Spacelab module into orbit.

The milestone came during STS-9, launched on November 28, 1983. Columbia carried the European-built Spacelab laboratory in its payload bay, transforming the shuttle from primarily a spacecraft-and-satellite carrier into a platform for repeated scientific research.

Spacelab was a pressurized laboratory module developed by the European Space Agency in cooperation with NASA. Astronauts could work inside the module in shirtsleeves while experiments outside the atmosphere were exposed to microgravity and space conditions. STS-9’s six-person crew conducted more than 70 experiments across astronomy, life science, materials science, and Earth observation.

A common mix-up is identifying Challenger because it flew soon before STS-9 and helped test communications systems needed for the Spacelab mission. Challenger did not carry the first Spacelab module, however. That historic first laboratory flight belonged to Columbia on STS-9, which lasted just over ten days.