Expert Opinion
AIN Blog: The Final Shuttle Mission Looks Down on a Vastly Changed World Beneath
At 11:29 this morning, the final space shuttle flight got under way as Atlantis rose from the launch pad on a column of fire from the Kennedy Space
At 11:29 this morning, the final space shuttle flight got under way as Atlantis rose from the launch pad on a column of fire from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The threat of thunderstorms had remained at bay, and, some 2.5 minutes later than planned, STS-135 headed skyward to punch through an overcast on its way to spending 12 days in the void above.
Within scant minutes of a perfect launch, the spacecraft was doing 7,000 mph, headed for 140 miles up, 15,000 mph and a rendezvous with the International Space Station on Sunday morning. Atlantis left the pad with just four crew, rather than the usual six or seven, and the Nasa website shows its payload as the Raffaello Multi-purpose Logistics Module.
