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News Archive 2011: July
The Merritt Island Launch Annex tracking station at Kennedy Space Center -- better known as MILA -- has closed after supporting NASA launches for 45 years.
Juno seeks new insights into origins of planet Jupiter
NASA's solar-powered Juno spacecraft will go into orbit around Jupiter's poles to precisely map the planet's gravitational and magnetic fields, probe its turbulent atmosphere and hidden interior and study the mechanisms responsible for its powerhouse auroras, the strongest in the solar system.
FULL STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER - live updates!
Enceladus feeds water to Saturn's atmosphere
A 14-year-old mystery has been solved as astronomers discover that plumes of water gushing from Saturn's moon Enceladus are the source of water in the planet's upper atmosphere.
FULL STORY
Dying star's last gasps provides new Kepler target
A new planetary nebula, recently discovered thanks to the combined efforts of amateur and professional astronomers and within sight of the Kepler spacecraft, could hold the key to understanding how our own Sun's life will end.
FULL STORY
Atlas and Delta boosters sail together to Cape Canaveral
Continuing its efforts to blend the Atlas and Delta rocket families, United Launch Alliance this week shipped two vehicles together for the first time aboard an ocean-going vessel from the firm's Alabama factory to the Cape Canaveral spaceport.
FULL STORY OUR ATLAS ARCHIVE OUR DELTA ARCHIVE
Jupiter-bound Juno probe mounted atop its launcher
With just 9 days left until blastoff, the Juno spacecraft Wednesday was placed atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket that will send the spacecraft on its journey to Jupiter.
MISSION STATUS CENTER - live updates!
Europe seeks greater role in NASA's exploration missions
The European Space Agency wants to take on a major task in NASA's future space exploration plans, proposing to combine parts of Europe's existing space station freighter with the U.S. Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle for human voyages into deep space.
FULL STORY
Another Chinese navigation satellite launched into orbit
Launching in a torrential rain and lightning storm, a Long March rocket lifted off Tuesday from southwest China and successfully released a navigation satellite in orbit, state-run media reported.
FULL STORY
Hired private cargo ships booked to visit space station
With the International Space Station stocked with food and clothing by the last space shuttle mission, SpaceX and Orbital Sciences are gearing up for test flights of their cargo freighters to the orbiting lab in December and February, government and industry officials said.
FULL STORY
Russian radio telescope deploys huge antenna
A newly-launched Russian radio telescope successfully unfurled a 10-meter dish-shaped reflector this weekend, overcoming one of the biggest risks on the observatory's ambitious mission to see inside black holes and view other cosmic phenomena.
FULL STORY
Voyages to deep space will originate from shuttle pads
With demolition nearly complete on Kennedy Space Center's northernmost launch complex, NASA plans to put launch pad 39A into mothballs in the coming months for long-term storage until human expeditions depart for asteroids or Mars, according to agency officials.
FULL STORY
The Mars rover Spirit
Mission officials and scientists pay tribute to the Spirit rover that explored Mars for six years before succumbing to the harsh Martian winter in 2010.
More Stories
Curiosity rover will explore 'scenic' Gale crater on Mars
The next Mars rover will make a pinpoint landing inside Gale crater, a scenic impact site adorned with ragged rock formations and a colossal mountain rising more than 15,000 feet high, NASA announced Friday.
FULL STORY
Inspiring onboard video views of Atlantis' launch
Take a ride on the final space shuttle launch with remarkable footage captured from cameras mounted on the solid rocket boosters, external fuel tank and even inside Atlantis' cockpit looking back at the astronauts. Check out these amazing videos of the spacecraft soaring to orbit, which are presented here for Spaceflight Now+Plus users with launch audio.
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
LAUNCH WITH THE ASTRONAUTS IN THE COCKPIT PLAY VIDEO:
LEFT-HAND BOOSTER CAMERA LOOKING UPWARD PLAY VIDEO:
LEFT-HAND BOOSTER CAMERA LOOKING INBOARD PLAY VIDEO:
LEFT-HAND BOOSTER CAMERA LOOKING DOWNWARD PLAY VIDEO:
RIGHT-HAND BOOSTER CAMERA LOOKING UPWARD PLAY VIDEO:
RIGHT-HAND BOOSTER CAMERA LOOKING INBOARD PLAY VIDEO:
RIGHT-HAND BOOSTER CAMERA LOOKING DOWNWARD PLAY VIDEO:
EXTERNAL TANK CAMERA FROM LIFTOFF TO SEPARATION PLAY MORE:STS-135 VIDEO COVERAGE MORE:HIGH DEFINITION VIDEO COVERAGE SUBSCRIBE NOW
Hubble telescope discovers Pluto's fourth moon
Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope to look for potential rings around dwarf planet Pluto have instead uncovered a fourth moon orbiting the distant icy world.
FULL STORY
Astronauts ready Atlantis for Thursday's landing
The crew of the shuttle Atlantis, working through one of the busiest days of their mission, tested the orbiter's re-entry systems Wednesday and packed up for landing Thursday to close out NASA's 135th and final shuttle mission.
FULL STORY WEATHER LOOKS PROMISING NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. M (.pdf download)
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 13 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
COMMANDER'S GOODNIGHT MESSAGE PLAY VIDEO:
NETWORK TV INTERVIEWS WITH THE CREW PLAY VIDEO:
WEDNESDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
PICOSAT DEPLOYED FROM SPACE SHUTTLE PLAY VIDEO:
TESTING OF ATLANTIS' AEROSURFACES PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
International Space Station bids goodbye to the shuttle
The final space shuttle parted company with the International Space Station on Tuesday in a sentimental sendoff for America's winged machines that spent the past decade constructing the million-pound science complex and supplying the orbiting laboratory with vast loads of logistics. In 37 missions, the shuttles spent 276 days, 11 hours and 23 minutes docked at the station.
FULL STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. L (.pdf download)
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 12 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
MISSION MANAGEMENT TEAM UPDATE PLAY VIDEO:
TUESDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
FINAL ORBITER HEAT SHIELD INSPECTIONS PLAY VIDEO:
SHUTTLE'S FLYAROUND OF THE SPACE STATION PLAY VIDEO:
STATION PERFORMS 90-DEGREE YAW MANEUVER PLAY VIDEO:
ATLANTIS' UNDOCKING AS SEEN LIVE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
NASA agrees to help modify Atlas 5 rocket for astronauts
United Launch Alliance and NASA will share technical data to help ready the company's Atlas 5 rocket for astronaut passengers, officials announced Monday. The agreement places the Atlas 5 rocket among the top competitors to launch the next piloted spacecraft from U.S. soil after the retirement of the space shuttle. FULL STORY
Dawn unmasks Vesta
The Dawn spacecraft slipped into orbit Saturday around Vesta, one of the largest unexplored objects in the solar system. Vesta is the second-most massive body in the main asteroid belt, and Dawn returned its first close-up image of the 300-mile-wide protoplanet on Sunday.
IMAGES:DAWN SEES A NEW WORLD
Raffaello cargo module returned to shuttle bay
In the dwindling hours of the shuttle program's last visit to the International Space Station, the Atlantis astronauts detached the bus-size Raffaello cargo module and moved it back to the shuttle's payload bay, wrapping up NASA's final shuttle-station resupply mission. FULL STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. K (.pdf download)
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 11 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
MONDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
FAREWELL CEREMONY FOR SHUTTLE CREW PLAY VIDEO:
TIME-LAPSE OF RAFFAELLO OPERATIONS PLAY VIDEO:
MODULE RETURNED TO SHUTTLE BAY PLAY VIDEO:
RAFFAELLO DETACHED FROM STATION PLAY VIDEO:
ROBOT ARM GRAPPLES CARGO MODULE PLAY VIDEO:
MONDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Russian satellite on mission to peer inside black holes
Russia launched a long-delayed radio telescope Monday to help astronomers see deeper into supermassive black holes, obtain views of collapsed stars and better measure the influence of dark energy on the cosmos. FULL STORY IMAGES:ZENIT ROCKET LIFTS OFF
Space station restocking completed by Atlantis crew
The Atlantis astronauts put in a final day of logistics transfer work Sunday, working through off-duty time to finish moving a last few items into the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module for return to Earth.
FULL STORY MORNING STORY
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FLIGHT DAY 10 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
SUNDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
SUNDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Dawn asteroid explorer moves into orbit at Vesta
NASA's robotic Dawn spacecraft drifted into orbit around Vesta on Saturday, starting a yearlong science campaign to map one of the solar system's largest unexplored worlds sandwiched in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
FULL STORY
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FULL LAUNCH EXPERIENCE OF DELTA/GPS 2F-2 PLAY | HI-DEF SUBSCRIBE NOW
Two broadcasting satellites share Proton rocket ride
Communications satellites for North America and Kazakhstan blasted off on top of a Proton rocket Friday and successfully arrived hours later at their targeted posts thousands of miles from Earth.
FULL STORY IMAGES:LIFTOFF FROM BAIKONUR VIDEO AND IMAGES:PROTON ROLLS TO PAD
Crew repacking cargo module for Earth return
Work to move supplies and equipment into the International Space Station and to reload a shuttle cargo module with trash, packing material and no-longer-needed gear is about 78 percent complete as the Atlantis astronauts move into the home stretch of NASA's final shuttle mission.
FULL STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. J (.pdf download)
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 9 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
SATURDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
NASA: Extra money needed to launch JWST this decade
One week after a House subcommittee proposed terminating NASA's costly successor to the orbiting Hubble observatory, agency officials told an advisory panel Thursday that the James Webb Space Telescope can be launched as soon as 2018, but political realities could delay the mission's start well into the 2020s.
FULL STORY HOUSE PROPOSES CANCELING JWST
Obama calls space to praise shuttle and station crews
President Barack Obama made a long distance call from the Oval Office to International Space Station Friday, congratulating the Atlantis astronauts and their station colleagues on the 135th and final space shuttle mission, vowing an "exciting new era" of post-shuttle exploration.
FULL STORY ATLANTIS COMPUTER RESTARTED MORNING STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. I (.pdf download)
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FLIGHT DAY 8 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
PRESIDENT OBAMA CALLS THE ASTRONAUTS IN SPACE PLAY VIDEO:
SHUTTLE AND STATION CREW NEWS CONFERENCE PLAY VIDEO:
FRIDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
PHILLY TV AND RADIO AND REUTERS INTERVIEWS PLAY VIDEO:
CBS NEWS RADIO, PHILLY TV AND THE AP INTERVIEWS PLAY VIDEO:
FRIDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Indian satellite launched to serve rural communities
A beefed-up Indian rocket soared into orbit Friday with a 3,100-pound communications satellite to link impoverished rural communities with education and health centers.
FULL STORY
Computer shutdown sounds alarm and awakens crew
The Atlantis astronauts were awakened by a master alarm Thursday when one of the shuttle's five general purpose computers apparently failed, NASA officials said. GPC-4 was running systems management software at the time and commander Christopher Ferguson spent about 45 minutes loading that software into general purpose computer No. 2 before going back to bed.
FULL STORY MORNING STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. G (.pdf download)
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 7 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
CHICAGO, OAKLAND AND PHILLY TV INTERVIEWS PLAY VIDEO:
FOX NEWS RADIO AND ST. LOUIS TV INTERVIEWS PLAY VIDEO:
THURSDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Discovery leaves hangar to make room for Atlantis
The space shuttle Discovery on Wednesday morning made her first public appearance outside the hangar since being retired, emerging without any main engines, nose thrusters or aft rocket pods. Seeing the stripped down orbiter with a gaping hole in the nose was a harsh reminder that the spaceship's flying days are over.
IMAGES:SPECIAL PHOTO GALLERY VIDEO:DISCOVERY MOVES TO STORAGE STS-133 ARCHIVE
Astronauts now focusing on hectic cargo transfer work
With a final shuttle-era spacewalk behind them, the Atlantis astronauts focused on logistics transfers Wednesday, devoting their day to moving cargo and supplies from the shuttle's crew cabin and the Raffaello multi-purpose module into the International Space Station. They also took time for maintenance work, servicing the lab's U.S. toilet and restarting the crew's urine recycling system after standing down a day to let a strong odor dissipate.
FULL STORY MORNING STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. F (.pdf download)
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FLIGHT DAY 6 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
WEDNESDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
WEDNESDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Soyuz rocket launch beefs up Globalstar satellite fleet
Six fresh spacecraft for Globalstar's mobile communications satellite fleet were deployed Wednesday by a Russian Soyuz rocket, propping up the company's degraded two-way voice service for more than 400,000 subscribers around the world.
FULL STORY IMAGES:SOYUZ BLASTS OFF
Final spacewalk in the shuttle era is complete
International Space Station residents Mike Fossum and Ron Garan stepped outside Tuesday to lend helping hands to the space shuttle mission, packing a failed ammonia coolant pump into Atlantis' payload bay for return to Earth and unloading a satellite servicing demonstrator carried to orbit aboard the visiting spaceplane. The spacewalkers also deployed a new materials science experiment, fixed a snagged wire in a base for the station's robot arm and wrapped a vacant docking port with a thermal cover.
FULL STORY ARCHIVE MISSION STATUS CENTER IMAGES:ASTRONAUTS VENTURE OUTDOORS MORNING STORY NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. E (.pdf download)
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FLIGHT DAY 5 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
TUESDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
FINAL SHUTTLE-ERA SPACEWALK CONCLUDES PLAY VIDEO:
PROTECTIVE COVER PUT ON VACANT DOCKING PORT PLAY VIDEO:
FIXING SNAGGED WIRE ON ZARYA GRAPPLE FIXTURE PLAY VIDEO:
SPACEWALKER GOES SIGHT-SEEING HIGH ABOVE EARTH PLAY VIDEO:
SATELLITE SERVICING DEMONSTRATOR GIVEN TO DEXTRE PLAY VIDEO:
ROBOTIC REFUELING MISSION MOVED TO THE STATION PLAY VIDEO:
SPACEWALKERS SWAP POSITIONS ABOARD ROBOT ARM PLAY VIDEO:
PUMP STOWED IN ATLANTIS BAY FOR RETURN TO EARTH PLAY VIDEO:
STUNNING VIEWS OF ASTRONAUT RIDING ROBOT ARM PLAY VIDEO:
FAILED PUMP FREED FROM STORAGE BOX PLAY VIDEO:
SPACEWALK NO. 1 GETS UNDERWAY PLAY VIDEO:
STEP-BY-STEP PREVIEW OF SPACEWALK PLAY VIDEO:
TUESDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 4 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Space station resupply pod hoisted from Atlantis' bay
A cargo-delivery module packed with 9,400 pounds of food, equipment and science gear departed shuttle Atlantis' payload bay Monday morning and parked at the International Space Station's doorway for unloading. Meanwhile, NASA has officially added an extra day to the shuttle mission.
FULL STORY MORNING STORY ARCHIVE MISSION STATUS CENTER NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. D (.pdf download)
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MONDAY'S MISSION MANAGEMENT TEAM UPDATE PLAY VIDEO:
MONDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
RAFFAELLO MODULE CONNECTED TO STATION PLAY VIDEO:
CARGO-DELIVERY MODULE UNBERTHED FROM ATLANTIS PLAY VIDEO:
ROBOT ARM GRAPPLES MODULE IN SHUTTLE BAY PLAY VIDEO:
MONDAY MORNING FLIGHT DIRECTOR UPDATE PLAY VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
THE FULL STS-135 LAUNCH EXPERIENCE PLAY VIDEO:
SHUTTLE ATLANTIS BLASTS OFF! PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
GO INSIDE MISSION CONTROL DURING LAUNCH PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
THE POST-LAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE PLAY VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: VAB ROOF PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: PRESS SITE PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: PAD PERIMETER PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: BEACH TRACKER PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: PAD FRONT CAMERA PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: PAD CAMERA 070 PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: PAD CAMERA 071 PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: UCS-23 TRACKER PLAY | HI-DEF VIDEO:
LAUNCH REPLAY: WEST TOWER PLAY | HI-DEF SUBSCRIBE NOW
Chinese satellite launched to track docking attempt
China launched its second data relay satellite Monday, expanding the country's space communications network before the first Chinese space docking attempt later this year.
FULL STORY
Atlantis gracefully docks to International Space Station
America's final space shuttle has arrived at the International Space Station, the science laboratory it trucked piece by piece to orbit for assembly, to deliver one last massive load of goods and provisions that only the winged spaceplanes can carry.
FULL STORY MORNING STORY ARCHIVE MISSION STATUS CENTER IMAGES:SHUTTLE MEETS UP WITH STATION NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. C (.pdf download)
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FLIGHT DAY 3 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
SUNDAY'S MISSION MANAGEMENT TEAM UPDATE PLAY VIDEO:
SUNDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
ATLANTIS CREW WELCOMED ABOARD STATION PLAY VIDEO:
DOCKING OF SHUTTLE TO STATION AS SEEN LIVE PLAY VIDEO:
SHUTTLE ARCS OUT IN FRONT OF SPACE STATION PLAY VIDEO:
ATLANTIS PERFORMS THE 360-DEGREE BACKFLIP PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Shuttle boosters back in port after final launch
The solid rocket boosters from the space shuttle's final launch are back in port. These images show one of the spent motor casings arriving back at Port Canaveral on Sunday.
IMAGES:BOOSTER TOWED INTO PORT IMAGES:GOING THROUGH THE LOCK
Astronauts give Atlantis full post-launch inspection
The Atlantis astronauts inspected the shuttle's heat shield Saturday and fine tuned the shuttle's approach to the International Space Station, setting their sights on docking at the lab's forward port Sunday.
FULL STORY MORNING STORY ARCHIVE MISSION STATUS CENTER NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. B (.pdf download)
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FLIGHT DAY 2 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY VIDEO:
SATURDAY'S MISSION MANAGEMENT TEAM UPDATE PLAY VIDEO:
SATURDAY'S MISSION STATUS BRIEFING PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Additional coverage for subscribers: VIDEO:
FLIGHT DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS REEL PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Mission preview: Shuttle finale brings uncertainty
NASA is readying the shuttle Atlantis for launch Friday on the iconic program's 135th and final flight, bringing the curtain down on one of the nation's greatest technological triumphs after more than three decades at the apex of manned spaceflight.
FULL REPORT
Painful retirement for space shuttle operations team Atlantis' landing will come seven-and-a-half years after President George W. Bush, responding to the 2003 Columbia disaster, ordered NASA to complete the International Space Station and retire the space shuttle fleet by the end of the decade. U.S. must rely upon the Russians for access to space Reliance on the former Cold War rival has been a particularly bitter pill to swallow for many at NASA, forced to retire the most sophisticated manned spacecraft ever built before a U.S. replacement is available. Dismantling remaining shuttle team looms As NASA's fortunes have waxed and waned, buffeted by political upheaval, an economic crisis and uncertain public support, the one constant has been the shuttle's looming retirement and the slow but steady elimination of the program's highly skilled workforce. Soyuz capsules would rescue Atlantis crew Atlantis is using NASA's final set of solid-fuel boosters and its last external tank, so there isn't another shuttle waiting in the wings for a quick-response rescue mission if needed. Soyuz lifeboats will be used in such a dire scenario. Atlantis' astronaut crew faces tight mission timeline The day after takeoff will be particularly busy as the astronauts as they inspect the shuttle's heat shield, dock to the International Space Station and mount the Raffaello module onto the complex. Station crew to do spacewalk chores on Atlantis visit While the astronauts begin unloading the cargo module, fellow station residents Ron Garan and Mike Fossum will conduct the mission's only spacewalk. The final shuttle re-entry Hundreds of engineers, technicians, astronauts and NASA managers will be standing by to welcome Atlantis and its crew home and to "share the moment" as the shuttle program comes to an end after three decades.
House panel proposes killing Hubble successor
Legislators seeking to rein in government spending have put the troubled James Webb Space Telescope up for cancellation, saying the successor to NASA's Hubble observatory is haunted by poor management and out-of-control costs.
FULL STORY
Iffy weather forecast clouds Friday's launch plans
Forecasters are predicting a 70 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms Friday that could delay launch of the shuttle Atlantis. But barring a dramatic change for the worse, the chairman of NASA's mission management team says he plans to press ahead with flight preparations.
FULL STORY IMAGES:WEDNESDAY'S SUNSET NASA TV SCHEDULE REV. 0 (.pdf download)
Shuttle Atlantis prepares to take flight for final journey
As we prepare to say goodbye to the space shuttle, let's take a moment to reflect on the ship that will sail the final voyage this week with a look at Atlantis' history and a special photo tribute as she stands on the launch pad one last time.
HISTORY OF ATLANTIS IMAGES:SPECIAL PHOTO TRIBUTE
Countdown commences for shuttle Atlantis' blastoff
Countdown clocks began ticking Tuesday for the shuttle Atlantis' launch Friday on NASA's 135th and final shuttle mission, a flight to deliver more than 8,000 pounds of supplies and equipment to the International Space Station.
FULL STORY IMAGES:L-MINUS 3 DAYS
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COUNTDOWN PREVIEW AND WEATHER FORECAST BRIEFING PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Shuttle Atlantis astronauts arrive for Friday's launch
This was it. The last time a space shuttle crew will jet into the Kennedy Space Center to begin their countdown. And no one knows when the next time astronauts will come to the Florida spaceport to be launched from the planet.
FULL STORY IMAGES:LAST SHUTTLE CREW ARRIVES
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ASTRONAUTS ARRIVE AT LAUNCH SITE PLAY VIDEO:
PRE-FLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH CHRIS FERGUSON PLAY VIDEO:
PRE-FLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH DOUG HURLEY PLAY VIDEO:
PRE-FLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH SANDY MAGNUS PLAY VIDEO:
PRE-FLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH REX WALHEIM PLAY VIDEO:
SHUTTLE AND STATION PROGRAM BRIEFING PLAY VIDEO:
THE STS-135 MISSION OVERVIEW PRESENTATIONS PLAY VIDEO:
PREVIEW BRIEFING ON MISSION'S SPACEWALK PLAY VIDEO:
THE ASTRONAUTS' PRE-FLIGHT NEWS BRIEFING PLAY SUBSCRIBE NOW
Cornerstone of Chinese space station to launch soon
China plans to launch the first module of an envisioned space laboratory by the end of September, and the rising space power will attempt its first in-orbit docking weeks later, according to space program officials and state-run media reports.
FULL STORY
Get to know Atlantis' crew: The final shuttle astronauts
Fergie, Chunky, Sandy and Rex. You can call them "the final four." They are the astronauts chosen to launch Atlantis into orbit Friday for the space shuttle program's grand finale.
FULL STORY
Ariane 5 rocket launch postponed about 20 days
Two television broadcasting satellites to serve Europe and Japan were grounded Friday by a malfunctioning hydrogen fuel valve on the Ariane 5 rocket's first stage main engine. Arianespace says the rocket will be rolled back to the final assembly building to replace the valve, delaying the launch about 20 days.
PREVIEW STORY OUR ARIANE ARCHIVE
VIDEO:
LAUNCH WITH THE ASTRONAUTS IN THE COCKPIT 
