Space Shuttle Atlantis blasted off for the last time from the launch pad here at Cape Canaveral this morning. It was a cloudy day and so the 1 million+ estimated onlookers (including us) could only see it for a few seconds before it disappeared behind the many, many clouds in the sky. This was the last launch of any space shuttle from Cape Canaveral.
About 30 seconds after liftoff
And that's all she wrote....the final countdown is now over.
Under a dry, hot, cloud-washed Florida sky, space shuttle Atlantis roars off Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida with its crew of seven for a rendezvous with NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. The launch was on time at 2:01 p.m. EDT. Atlantis’ 11-day flight will include five spacewalks to refurbish and upgrade the telescope with state-of-the-art science instruments that will expand Hubble’s capabilities and extend its operational lifespan through at least 2014. The payload includes the Wide Field Camera 3, fine guidance sensor and the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph.
I took these shots from the cruise ship terminal at Cape Canaveral. Only 8 more shuttle launches are scheduled.
One of the benefits of my new Merritt Island location is the proximity to the Kennedy Space Center. On May 31, at 5:02pm, NASA launched the shuttle Discovery. Viewing the launch from seaDee’s dinghy, I shot some video. The NASA web site has some great multimedia and you can follow this linkfor more info on this current mission.
