Columbia made the only space-shuttle landing at White Sands Space Harbor.
The landing occurred at the end of STS-3 on March 30, 1982. NASA had planned to land Columbia at Edwards Air Force Base, but heavy rain made the California site unsuitable. The agency redirected the orbiter to the White Sands Space Harbor runway in New Mexico.
STS-3 was Columbia’s third orbital mission and tested the shuttle’s performance during a longer flight. Commander Jack Lousma and pilot Gordon Fullerton spent more than eight days in orbit, conducting engineering tests and scientific experiments.
White Sands was prepared as an alternate landing site because its dry lakebed and wide runway offered a large, forgiving landing area. However, NASA never used it for another shuttle landing. Later missions generally returned to Edwards or Kennedy Space Center, making Columbia’s STS-3 touchdown at White Sands a unique event in shuttle history.