How to Draw Space Shuttles in 7 Steps

Your space shuttle can travel to the stars and visit distant worlds. Use these step-by-step instructions to create your own space-exploration scenes.

In this article, we'll show you how to draw the above space shuttle. Either draw it freehand while looking at your computer monitor or print out this page to get a closer look at each step.

Follow the red lines in each illustration to learn exactly what to draw in that step. The lines drawn in previous steps are shown in gray. Here, we'll show you an illustration of each step and then give you a description of how to draw it.

Ready to get started? Head over to the next page for the first step.

Contents

Draw the Body
Add the Tail Fin
Draw the Cargo Doors
Draw the Engines
Add the Cockpit Windows
Draw Engine Fire
Add the Final Touches

1. Draw the Body

Draw the curved shape of the main shuttle body. Add a curved triangle for the forward wing and a wedge shape for the back wing.

Check out the next page and find out how to draw the tail fin.

2. Add the Tail Fin

Draw a tall wedge shape at the back of the shuttle for the tail fin. Add rectangles on both wings and the tail fin. Outline the closest wing and the closest tip of the nose to add depth. Add a rounded nose cone.

In the next step, we'll learn how to draw the cargo doors.

3. Draw the Cargo Doors

Draw two curved rectangles to create the cargo bay doors and a hatch on the nose of the shuttle. Add a rectangle for a hatch detail on the closest wing.

In the next step, we'll add the engine pods.

4. Draw the Engines

Sketch four rounded shapes toward the back of the shuttle for the engine pods.

On the next page, we'll add the cockpit windows.

5. Add the Cockpit Windows

Draw rectangles for the cockpit windows as well as hatch details on the body. Add three narrow ovals to the hatch on the nose.

This shuttle is almost ready for blast off! We'll add fire to the engines on the next page.

6. Draw Engine Fire

Draw line details on the wings, bay door, and fin. Sketch curved lines just beyond the shuttle for the engines. Add some small circles on the engine pod. Draw wavy lines for fire coming out of the engines.

We're almost done! We'll finish our drawing on the next page.

7. Add the Final Touches

Trace the lines you want to keep with a felt-tip pen. Erase any extra pencil lines.

And there's your space shuttle. Keep practicing doing the same drawings -- your new sketches will get easier and easier!

Travel back in time with our next aircraft -- on the next page, learn to draw a World War II plane.

See all How to Draw articles.