STS-135: Atlantis touches down; Shuttle program over

[Tireman4]

Stopped at 31 seconds...

[Tireman4]

Back again... here we go....

[artist]

God speed Atlantis!

[Stephanie]

I cried watching the video online. GOD SPEED ATLANTIS!

[vbhoutex]

It was a beautiful launch. I wanted to be there for it, but that didn't work out. There was probably a little tear in my eye.

[MGC]

In all likely hood the last NASA launched manned rocket in my lifetime.....Sad....MGC

[Chacor]

Atlantis will undock from the International Space Station for the last time in a few hours. The day will begin at 9:59 pm EDT.

[Frank2]

...and it is scheduled to land at KSC at 5:56 AM on Thursday morning...

April 12, 1981 seems like a very long time ago, now - my Dad (deceased) and I were at KSC (one of the HRD Pro Mets had a car pass and he was kind enough to let us carpool with him from the hotel) for the launch of STS-1 - it was the first major life event without my Mom who passed on in 1980...

Again, seems like a long time ago, right Dad (lol)?

All the best to the NASA folks for 50 years of manned space flight - they certainly helped to give us some of the better memories in our lifetime!

Frank

[Chacor]

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- Atlantis and four astronauts returned from the International Space Station in triumph Thursday, bringing an end to NASA's 30-year shuttle journey with one last, rousing touchdown that drew cheers and tears.

A record crowd of 2,000 gathered near the landing strip, thousands more packed Kennedy Space Center and countless others watched from afar as NASA's longest-running spaceflight program came to a close.

"After serving the world for over 30 years, the space shuttle's earned its place in history. And it's come to a final stop," commander Christopher Ferguson radioed after a ghost-like Atlantis glided through the twilight.

"Job well done, America," replied Mission Control.

With the space shuttles retiring to museums, it will be another three to five years at best before Americans are launched again from U.S. soil, as private companies gear up to seize the Earth-to-orbit-and-back baton from NASA.

The long-term future for American space exploration is just as hazy, a huge concern for many at NASA and all those losing their jobs because of the shuttle's end. Asteroids and Mars are the destinations of choice, yet NASA has yet to settle on a rocket design to get astronauts there.

Thursday, though, belonged to Atlantis and its crew: Ferguson, co-pilot Douglas Hurley, Rex Walheim and Sandra Magnus, who completed a successful space station resupply mission.

Atlantis touched down at 5:57 a.m., with "wheels stop" less than a minute later.

"The space shuttle has changed the way we view the world and it's changed the way we view our universe," Ferguson radioed from Atlantis. "There's a lot of emotion today, but one thing's indisputable. America's not going to stop exploring.

"Thank you Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Endeavour, and our ship Atlantis, thank you for protecting us and bringing this program to such a fitting end."

Difficult to see in the darkness, Atlantis was greeted with cheers, whistles and shouts from the astronauts' families and friends, as well as shuttle managers and NASA brass, who had gathered near the runway. Soon, the sun was up and provided, finally, a splendid view. Within an hour, Ferguson and his crew were out on the runway and swarmed by well-wishers.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/ ... TE=DEFAULT

[Stephanie]

The Shuttle program was an amazing part of our history. I always grinned whenever I saw her land with the parachute streaming out, like it was some kind of glider. Totally amazing that she was a spaceship that was able to be reused again and again and sometimes had to hitch a ride on the back of a plane to be transported "home". Unfortunately, there were two horrific accidents that took the lives of all that rode them, thus reminding us of how dangerous space exporation really was.

Thank you for the memories and the pride you have given us all!

[brunota2003]

[SaskatchewanScreamer]

Oh how to age myself I watched all the Apollo missions (on t.v. of course being up here in Canada). Many were in school (the only times I remember classes stopping, and the t.v. being turned on, was for Apollo missions or Canada vs Russia hockey games ;o).

It truly is a heart breaker knowing the dreams, of our neighbour, that were thought back then have come to an end (at least for a while).

[Stephanie]

That's great!

[Stephanie]

Oh how to age myself I watched all the Apollo missions (on t.v. of course being up here in Canada). Many were in school (the only times I remember classes stopping, and the t.v. being turned on, was for Apollo missions or Canada vs Russia hockey games ;o).

It truly is a heart breaker knowing the dreams, of our neighbour, that were thought back then have come to an end (at least for a while).

We appreciate that. We lived that dream for 30 years though!

[SaskatchewanScreamer]

A wee bit of trivia...the 'high-refractory' brick used to construct some of the launch pads at Cape Canaveral came from a brick factory, just outside of Moose Jaw, that my great grandfather was part owner of:

"
The rare fire brick produced here lined the fire boxes of the CN and CP Rail line locomotives, and of the Corvette warships in World War II. The fire brick was also used in the construction of the rocket launch pads at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Not only does the brick plant constitute one of the best preserved examples of early 20th century industrial activity in Canada, but is one of a small number of heritage attractions in Saskatchewan to have achieved formal National Historic Site designation status."


http://www.claybank.sasktelwebsite.net/ ... Plant.html

[Stephanie]

A wee bit of trivia...the 'high-refractory' brick used to construct some of the launch pads at Cape Canaveral came from a brick factory, just outside of Moose Jaw, that my great grandfather was part owner of:

"
The rare fire brick produced here lined the fire boxes of the CN and CP Rail line locomotives, and of the Corvette warships in World War II. The fire brick was also used in the construction of the rocket launch pads at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Not only does the brick plant constitute one of the best preserved examples of early 20th century industrial activity in Canada, but is one of a small number of heritage attractions in Saskatchewan to have achieved formal National Historic Site designation status."

How cool is that?

http://www.claybank.sasktelwebsite.net/ ... Plant.html