Coming home to a future clouded by tight budgets and uncertain political support, commander Christopher Ferguson guided Atlantis through a sweeping left overhead turn and lined up on runway 15, quickly descending into the glare of powerful xenon spotlights.

Approaching the 3-mile-long runway, Ferguson pulled the shuttle's nose up in a graceful flare, pilot Douglas Hurley lowered the ship's landing gear and Atlantis settled to a tire-smoking touchdown at 5:57:00 a.m. EDT (GMT-4). A few seconds later, as Atlantis barreled down the runway at more than 200 mph, Hurley deployed a red-and-white braking parachute and the shuttle's nose gear settled to the runway.

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They will spend the night here before returning to Houston for a welcome ceremony at about 4 p.m. local time Friday at Ellington Field's Hangar 990.

At today's final landing of the space shuttle, we had the rare opportunity to witness history. We turned the page on a remarkable era and began the next chapter in our nation's extraordinary story of exploration.

The brave astronauts of STS-135 are emblematic of the shuttle program. Skilled professionals from diverse backgrounds who propelled America to continued leadership in space with the shuttle's many successes. It is my great honor today to welcome them home.

I salute them and all of the men and women who have flown shuttle missions since the very first launch on April 12, 1981.

The shuttle program brought our nation many firsts. Many proud moments, some of which I was privileged to experience myself as a shuttle commander. I was proud to be part of the shuttle program and will carry those experiences with me for the rest of my life.

As we move forward, we stand on the shoulders of these astronauts and the thousands of people who supported them on the ground - as well as those who cheered their triumphs and mourned their tragedies.

This final shuttle flight marks the end of an era, but today, we recommit ourselves to continuing human spaceflight and taking the necessary-and difficult-steps to ensure America's leadership in human spaceflight for years to come.

I want to send American astronauts where we've never been before by focusing our resources on exploration and innovation, while leveraging private sector support to take Americans to the International Space Station in low Earth orbit.

With the bold path President Obama and Congress have set us on, we will continue the grand tradition of exploration.

Children who dream of being astronauts today may not fly on the space shuttle . . . but, one day, they may walk on Mars. The future belongs to us. And just like those who came before us, we have an obligation to set an ambitious course and take an inspired nation along for the journey.

I'm ready to get on with the next big challenge.

The future is bright for human spaceflight and for NASA. American ingenuity is alive and well. And it will fire up our economy and help us win the future, but only if we dream big and imagine endless possibilities. That future begins today.

Main Gear Touchdown
5:57:00 a.m. EDT
MET: 12 days, 18 hours, 27 minutes, 56 seconds

Nose Gear Touchdown
5:57:20 a.m. EDT
MET: 12 days, 18 hours, 28 minutes, 16 seconds

Wheels Stop
5:57:54 a.m. EDT
MET: 12 days, 18 hours, 28 minutes, 50 seconds

The shuttle is flying at Mach 25 with its nose elevated 40 degrees, wings level, at an altitude of 400,000 feet over the Pacific Ocean.

Touchdown remains set for 5:56 a.m. EDT in Florida.

The Florida spaceport's Shuttle Landing Facility was built in 1975. The concrete strip is 300 feet wide and 15,000 feet long with 1,000-foot overruns at each end. The runway is located about three miles northwest of the 525-foot tall Vehicle Assembly Building.

Atlantis is targeting Runway 15, which is the northwest to southeast approach. The shuttle will make a 240-degree right overhead turn to align with the runway.

Touchdown in Florida on Runway 15 is set for 5:56 a.m. EDT, completing the 135th and final mission for the space shuttle program.

This "go" from Mission Control is seen as a good step toward an on-time landing. Houston typically doesn't force the crew into fluid loading unless deorbit looks at least possible.

Water, orange, lemonade, lemon-lime, grape and tropical punch drinks are on the menu for the astronauts to pick from.

Once in range of the Kennedy Space Center, commander Chris Ferguson will perform a 240-degree left overhead turn to align with Runway 15 for touchdown at 5:56 a.m. EDT.

The total mission duration will be 12 days, 18 hours and 27 minutes.

The Shuttle Training Aircraft is a modified Gulfstream jet that offers a close simulation to the flying characteristics of a space shuttle during landing.

The crew has completed the steps to bypass the shuttle's radiators on the insides of the payload bay doors and checked out of the ship's flash evaporator cooling system for entry.

The outlook for the landing opportunity one orbit later has the same conditions except the winds shift slightly to 260 degrees at 2 peaking to 3 knots.