system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
After the solid rocket boosters are jettisoned, how does the space shuttle continue to fly straight? Wouldn't the center of thrust have moved relative to the center of mass?

The main engines and the SRBs are required to lift the shuttle and the center of thrust is roughly inline with the center of mass. After the SRBs run out, the center of thrust is entirely in the main engines though the external tank still has a lot of mass. How does the shuttle continue accelerating straight?
gpt
The engines on the shuttle aren't fixed - the're capable of something like (and this is based on a vague memory that is probably completely wrong) 10 degrees of movement, and so they can adjust the direction of thrust after the SRBs are jettisoned to make sure it remains pointing through the center of mass. So the direction of acceleration isn't actually in line with the nose of the shuttle, but a little bit below that, and under constant adjustment as the external tank is used up.