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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Twin columns of fire propel Space Shuttle Atlantis into a clear blue sky after liftoff from Launch Pad 39B. Atlantis is heading for a rendezvous with the International Space Station on mission STS-115. Liftoff was on-time at 11:14:55 a.m. EDT. After several launch attempts were scrubbed due to weather and technical concerns, this launch was executed perfectly. Mission STS-115 is the 116th space shuttle flight, the 27th flight for orbiter Atlantis, and the 19th U.S. flight to the International Space Station. During the mission, Atlantis' astronauts will deliver and install the 17.5-ton, bus-sized P3/P4 integrated truss segment on the station. The girder-like truss includes a set of giant solar arrays, batteries and associated electronics and will provide one-fourth of the total power-generation capability for the completed station. STS-115 is scheduled to last 11 days with a planned landing at KSC KSC-06pp2149

STS-118 - EOM - Public domain NASA photogrpaph

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – After rolling out of Orbiter Processing Facility 2, space shuttle Endeavour begins the turn toward the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. In the VAB, Endeavour will be attached to its external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters. After additional preparations are made, the shuttle will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39B. Endeavour is the backup shuttle, if needed for rescue, for space shuttle Atlantis’ STS-125 mission to NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope targeted for October. Photo credit: NASA/Troy Cryder KSC-08pd2602

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Before sunrise at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, lights on the mate-demate device reveal space shuttle Discovery suspended above the ground. Operations are under way to place Discovery on top of a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft in preparation for its departure from Kennedy on Tuesday. A tail cone has been installed over Discovery’s three replica shuttle main engines to reduce aerodynamic drag and turbulence during the ferry flight. The device, known as the MDD, is a large gantry-like steel structure used to hoist a shuttle off the ground and position it onto the back of the aircraft, or SCA. The SCA is a Boeing 747 jet, originally manufactured for commercial use, which was modified by NASA to transport the shuttles between destinations on Earth. The SCA designated NASA 905 is assigned to the remaining ferry missions, delivering the shuttles to their permanent public display sites. NASA 905 is scheduled to ferry Discovery to the Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia on April 17, after which the shuttle will be placed on display in the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. For more information on the SCA, visit http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/FactSheets/FS-013-DFRC.html. For more information on shuttle transition and retirement activities, visit http://www.nasa.gov/transition. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett KSC-2012-2163

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the access arm supporting the pad's White Room is in place against space shuttle Atlantis. The room provides workers and astronauts an entry point to the shuttle's crew compartment. The Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module (MPLM) payload for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-135 mission to the International Space Station has arrived at the pad. The payload canister will be lifted to the payload changeout room and the payload ground-handling mechanism then will be used to transfer Raffaello out of the canister into Atlantis' payload bay. Next, the rotating service structure that protects the shuttle from the elements and provides access will be rotated back into place. Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim are targeted to lift off on Atlantis July 8, taking with them the MPLM packed with supplies, logistics and spare parts to the station. The STS-135 mission also will fly a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites and return a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Space Shuttle Program. For more information visit, www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts135/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Frank Michaux KSC-2011-4498

The Final Landing of STS-135 Atlantis

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STS135-S-158 (21 July 2011) --- Ribbons of steam and smoke trail space shuttle Atlantis as it nears touchdown on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the final time. Securing the space shuttle fleet's place in history, Atlantis marked the 26th nighttime landing of NASA's Space Shuttle Program and the 78th landing at Kennedy. Main gear touchdown was at 5:57:00 a.m. (EDT) on July 21, 2011, followed by nose gear touchdown at 5:57:20 a.m., and wheelstop at 5:57:54 a.m. Onboard are NASA astronauts Chris Ferguson, STS-135 commander; Doug Hurley, pilot; Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, both mission specialists. On the 37th shuttle mission to the International Space Station, STS-135 delivered more than 9,400 pounds of spare parts, equipment and supplies in the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module that will sustain station operations for the next year. STS-135 was the 33rd and final flight for Atlantis, which has spent 307 days in space, orbited Earth 4,848 times and traveled 125,935,769 miles. Photo credit: NASA

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The Final Landing of STS-135 Atlantis

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