Enterprise. the shuttle enterprise isnt an actual working shuttle. it never was.
Our military keeps reusing names, partly because it's tradition that surrounds the names. i was torn between the constitution, and the Enterprise, but in the end i chose Enterprise mostly because Constitution is a weapon of War, not something that is meant to expand our horizons and look beyond. something that promotes world cooperation.
there are more things surrounding the name Enterprise than just the AirCraft Carrier. It has one of the richest histories of any of our ships names.
the enterprise was our first nuclear powered aircraft carrier. it pioneered nuclear power on ships.
the first enterprise was captured for the american military by bennidict arnold in the Revolutionary war.
there have been 8 naval enterprises, not including all the other enterprises (shuttles, and such)
besides, there wont be another shuttle. there will probably be something similar to the X-33. but the problem with those is that again, you're flying dead stick on reentry, and in addition, you have no space for payload.
and besides, so much of our history has been shaped by television, why dont we make a legacy we can look back on and laugh, but still be proud of?