Top Science News

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Like a winged sentinel radiance in white, the equipment Atlantis made one terminal trek to the start aggrandize tonight (May 31) to educate for its July 8 blastoff — a effort voyage for NASA after 30 years of expanse shuttle flights.

Atlantis began the slow creeping to Launch Pad 39A here at the President Space Center at 8:42 p.m. EDT (0042 June 1 GMT), emerging from the large 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building bathed in bright xenon spotlights.

The 3.4-mile (5.2-kilometer) travelling to the seaside aggrandize atop NASA's Apollo-era someone motortruck typically takes most six hours. Tonight's move, which was delayed slightly cod to a hydraulic leak on the large carrier, is the terminal activate some shuttle power take to the start pad, since NASA power fling its expanse shuttle after Atlantis' flight. [Most Memorable Shuttle Missions]

Thousands of spectators overturned discover to check Atlantis advise to the aggrandize for the rattling terminal time, and the quaternary astronauts who power control the shuttle's mission, which NASA calls STS-135, were on assistance to evaluation the historic event.

"We're disagreeable befittingly to discern and evaluation these milestones, but at the aforementioned time, we're heads down, nervy and rattling busy," Atlantis man Chris Ferguson told reporters at a media circumstance terminal week at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Atlantis, the ordinal oldest of NASA's expanse shuttles still flying, is regular to start on the shuttle program's effort assignment no primeval than July 8. An official start date power be declared by assignment managers following a Flight Readiness Review on June 28.

The historic grace power be the 135th and effort assignment of NASA's expanse shuttle program, which began air in 1981.

End of NASA's shuttle era

With the shuttle information rotation down, NASA employees hit been able to elicit kinsfolk and friends to check the shuttles listing to the start aggrandize for their effort missions. The unique opportunity helps to increase temperament as the information comes to a close, but also allows the shuttle workers to share the fruits of their fag with idolized ones, NASA officials hit said.

For the astronauts who power control Atlantis on its effort mission, paying commendation to these architects of the agency's 30-year shuttle information is important. [NASA's Space Shuttle – From Top to Bottom]

"We rattling poverty to discern the folks in metropolis who hit provided decades of support for the expanse shuttle," Ferguson said. "Of course, the folks at KSC – several of whom hit already received their layoff notices – who are, I think, direction the lion's share of this drawdown into the post-shuttle era. We'll essay to find a artefact to befittingly discern and impart them."

During Atlantis' 12-day flight, the shuttle power deliver an research "to demonstrate and effort the tools, technologies and techniques necessary to robotically refuel satellites in expanse – even satellites not designed to be serviced," NASA officials said in a statement.

Commander Chris Ferguson, airman Doug Hurley and assignment specialists Rex Walheim and Sandy Magnus power also regain an ammonia viscus that unsuccessful on the expanse station in July 2010. The unsuccessful viscus power module return to Earth aboard Atlantis so that engineers crapper understand why the component failed.

STS-135 power be Atlantis' 33rd and effort assignment before it is retired, along with the rest of the agency's equipment fleet.

Another shuttle set to land

Before Atlantis touched an inch toward its start pad, the deposit at President Space Center were abundant with activity since added shuttle, Endeavour, is slated to realty primeval weekday farewell at the Florida spaceport.

Endeavour and its six-astronaut gathering are regular to touch downbound on Runway 15 at the Shuttle Landing Facility at 2:35 a.m. EDT (0635 GMT) on Wednesday. [Photos: Shuttle Endeavour's Final Mission]

Endeavour is patch up its own 16-day mission, titled STS-134, to the International Space Station – its effort grace before existence retired. The shuttle delivered a nearly $2 1000000000 astrophysics research to the International Space Station among other supplies. The assignment included quaternary spacewalks, the terminal spacewalks ever for a shuttle crew.

NASA is unnoticeable its 30-year shuttle information to pore on building satellite and launchers for forthcoming expedition missions beyond low-Earth orbit, such as to an asteroid and Mars. 

Once Atlantis returns from its effort flight, every three space-flown orbiters — Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour — power be old to museums for public display.

Atlantis, for its part, power stay in its Florida homeport. NASA is sending the shuttle to the President Space Center Visitor's Complex incoming door to the agency's start site.

You crapper study SPACE.com Staff Writer Denise Chow on Twitter @denisechow. Follow SPACE.com for the latest in expanse science and expedition news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.

• The Most Memorable Space Shuttle Missions
• Photos of Space Shuttle Endeavour's Final Launch
• Shuttle Comes Alive - The Power of Launch

Source