STS-134, June 1, 2011
Xenon lights help lead space shuttle Endeavour home to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour landed for the final time on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15, marking the 24th night landing of NASA's Space Shuttle Program. Main gear touchdown was at 2:34:51 a.m. (EDT) on June 1, 2011, followed by nose gear touchdown at 2:35:04 a.m., and wheelstop at 2:35:36 a.m. Onboard are NASA astronauts Mark Kelly, STS-134 commander; Greg H. Johnson, pilot; Michael Fincke, Andrew Feustel, Greg Chamitoff and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori, all mission specialists. STS-134 delivered the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS) and the Express Logistics Carrier-3 (ELC-3) to the International Space Station. AMS will help researchers understand the origin of the universe and search for evidence of dark matter, strange matter and antimatter from the station. ELC-3 carried spare parts that will sustain station operations once the shuttles are retired from service. STS-134 was the 25th and final flight for Endeavour, which has spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122,883,151 miles.
Xenon lights help lead space shuttle Endeavour home to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour landed for the final time on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15, marking the 24th night landing of NASA's Space Shuttle Program. Main gear touchdown was at 2:34:51 a.m. (EDT) on June 1, 2011, followed by nose gear touchdown at 2:35:04 a.m., and wheelstop at 2:35:36 a.m. Onboard are NASA astronauts Mark Kelly, STS-134 commander; Greg H. Johnson, pilot; Michael Fincke, Andrew Feustel, Greg Chamitoff and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori, all mission specialists. STS-134 delivered the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS) and the Express Logistics Carrier-3 (ELC-3) to the International Space Station. AMS will help researchers understand the origin of the universe and search for evidence of dark matter, strange matter and antimatter from the station. ELC-3 carried spare parts that will sustain station operations once the shuttles are retired from service. STS-134 was the 25th and final flight for Endeavour, which has spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122,883,151 miles.
(credit: NASA-KSC)
STS-134, June 1, 2011
Space shuttle Endeavour's drag chute is reflected on the vehicle's tail end as it rolls to a stop on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the final time. Main gear touchdown was at 2:34:51 a.m. (EDT) on June 1, 2011, followed by nose gear touchdown at 2:35:04 a.m., and wheelstop at 2:35:36 a.m. Onboard are NASA astronauts Mark Kelly, STS-134 commander; Greg H. Johnson, pilot; Michael Fincke, Andrew Feustel, Greg Chamitoff and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori, all mission specialists. STS-134 delivered the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS) and the Express Logistics Carrier-3 (ELC-3) to the International Space Station. AMS will help researchers understand the origin of the universe and search for evidence of dark matter, strange matter and antimatter from the station. ELC-3 carried spare parts that will sustain station operations once the shuttles are retired from service. STS-134 was the 25th and final flight for Endeavour, which has spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122,883,151 miles.
Space shuttle Endeavour's drag chute is reflected on the vehicle's tail end as it rolls to a stop on the Shuttle Landing Facility's Runway 15 at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida for the final time. Main gear touchdown was at 2:34:51 a.m. (EDT) on June 1, 2011, followed by nose gear touchdown at 2:35:04 a.m., and wheelstop at 2:35:36 a.m. Onboard are NASA astronauts Mark Kelly, STS-134 commander; Greg H. Johnson, pilot; Michael Fincke, Andrew Feustel, Greg Chamitoff and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori, all mission specialists. STS-134 delivered the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS) and the Express Logistics Carrier-3 (ELC-3) to the International Space Station. AMS will help researchers understand the origin of the universe and search for evidence of dark matter, strange matter and antimatter from the station. ELC-3 carried spare parts that will sustain station operations once the shuttles are retired from service. STS-134 was the 25th and final flight for Endeavour, which has spent 299 days in space, orbited Earth 4,671 times and traveled 122,883,151 miles.
(credit: NASA-KSC)
LIFT-OFF!
ATDT, June 1, 1966
An Augmented Target Docking Adapter (ATDA) atop an Atlas launch vehicle is launched from Kennedy Space Center's Pad 14 at 10 a.m., June 1, 1966. The ATDA is a rendezvous and docking vehicle for the Gemini-9A space mission.
ATDT, June 1, 1966
An Augmented Target Docking Adapter (ATDA) atop an Atlas launch vehicle is launched from Kennedy Space Center's Pad 14 at 10 a.m., June 1, 1966. The ATDA is a rendezvous and docking vehicle for the Gemini-9A space mission.
(credit: NASA-KSC)
STS-124, May 31, 2008
The Space Shuttle Discovery and its seven-member STS-124 crew head toward Earth-orbit and a scheduled link-up with the International Space Station (ISS). Liftoff from Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A occurred at 5:02 p.m. (EDT). The STS-124 mission is the 26th in the assembly of the International Space Station. It is the second of three flights launching components to complete JAXA's Kibo laboratory. During the mission, the shuttle crew will install Kibo's large Japanese Pressurized Module and its remote manipulator system. Onboard are astronauts Mark Kelly, commander; Ken Ham, pilot; Karen Nyberg, Mike Fossum, Ron Garan, Greg Chamitoff and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, all mission specialists. Chamitoff will join Expedition 17 in progress to serve as a flight engineer aboard the station.
The Space Shuttle Discovery and its seven-member STS-124 crew head toward Earth-orbit and a scheduled link-up with the International Space Station (ISS). Liftoff from Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A occurred at 5:02 p.m. (EDT). The STS-124 mission is the 26th in the assembly of the International Space Station. It is the second of three flights launching components to complete JAXA's Kibo laboratory. During the mission, the shuttle crew will install Kibo's large Japanese Pressurized Module and its remote manipulator system. Onboard are astronauts Mark Kelly, commander; Ken Ham, pilot; Karen Nyberg, Mike Fossum, Ron Garan, Greg Chamitoff and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, all mission specialists. Chamitoff will join Expedition 17 in progress to serve as a flight engineer aboard the station.
(credit: NASA-KSC)
STS-70 mating, May 3, 1995
Inside the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building(VAB), workers carry out the meticulous process of lifting the orbiter Discovery (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) from a horizontal to a vertical position. Once upright, Discovery will be transferred into a high bay for mating with the external tank/solid rocket booster assembly already mounted on the mobile launcher platform. Completing the assembly process takes about five working days. Discovery's next destination, Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center(KSC) , and final preparations for liftoff on Mission STS-70 in early June. STS-70 was the 21st flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery, and the last of 7 shuttle missions to carry a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS). It was the first shuttle mission controlled from the new mission control center room at the Johnson Space Center(JSC) in Houston. STS-70 was also the first flight of the new Block 1 orbiter main engine, designed to improve both engine performance and safety. The mission was launched from Kennedy Space Center(KSC) in Florida on July 13, 1995, only six days after the landing of sister ship Atlantis STS-71 on July 7, 1995, marking the fastest turnaround between flights in the history of the program. The crew assigned to the STS-70 mission included Kevin R. Kregel, pilot; Nancy J. Currie, mission specialist; Terrence T, Henricks, commander; Mary Ellen Weber, mission specialist, and Donald A. Thomas, mission specialist.
Inside the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building(VAB), workers carry out the meticulous process of lifting the orbiter Discovery (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-103) from a horizontal to a vertical position. Once upright, Discovery will be transferred into a high bay for mating with the external tank/solid rocket booster assembly already mounted on the mobile launcher platform. Completing the assembly process takes about five working days. Discovery's next destination, Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center(KSC) , and final preparations for liftoff on Mission STS-70 in early June. STS-70 was the 21st flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery, and the last of 7 shuttle missions to carry a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS). It was the first shuttle mission controlled from the new mission control center room at the Johnson Space Center(JSC) in Houston. STS-70 was also the first flight of the new Block 1 orbiter main engine, designed to improve both engine performance and safety. The mission was launched from Kennedy Space Center(KSC) in Florida on July 13, 1995, only six days after the landing of sister ship Atlantis STS-71 on July 7, 1995, marking the fastest turnaround between flights in the history of the program. The crew assigned to the STS-70 mission included Kevin R. Kregel, pilot; Nancy J. Currie, mission specialist; Terrence T, Henricks, commander; Mary Ellen Weber, mission specialist, and Donald A. Thomas, mission specialist.
(credit: NASA-KSC)
An excellent view of the Apollo 16 Mission Landing Site with the Lunar
Module (LM) “Orion” on the left and the the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV)in
the center and with the U.S. flag on the right, photographed by
astronaut Charles M. Duke Jr., lunar module pilot, during the first
Apollo 16 extravehicular activity (EVA-1) at the Descartes landing site.
Astronaut John W. Young, commander, can be seen directly behind the
LRV. The lunar surface feature in the left background is Stone Mountain.
While astronauts Young and Duke descended in the LM to explore the
Descartes highlands landing site on the Moon, astronaut Thomas K.
Mattingly II, command module pilot, remained with the Command and
Service Modules (CSM) “Casper” in lunar orbit.
(credit: NASA-ALSJ)
(credit: NASA-ALSJ)
ht in NASA's the Space Shuttle program, and the disastrous final flight of Space Shuttle Columbia. The mission launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 16, 2003, and during its 16 days in orbit conducted a multitude of international scientific experiments.
The seven member crew (from left to right) were mission specialist Kalpana Chawla, mission specialist Laurel Clarks, pilot William McCool, Commander Rick Husband, mission specialist David Brown, mission specialist Michael Anderson and Israeli payload specialist Ilan Ramon were killed on February 1, 2003 when Columbia disintegrated during re-entry into the atmosphere. The Columbia Accident Investigation Board determined the failure was caused by a piece of foam that broke off during launch and damaged the thermal protection system (reinforced carbon-carbon panels and thermal protection tiles) on the leading edge of the orbiter's left wing. During re-entry the damaged wing slowly overheated and came apart, eventually leading to loss of control and disintegration of the vehicle.
(credit: NASA-KSC)
Apolo 10, May 25, 1969
Life aboard the Apollo 10 Command Module, Commander (CDR) Thomas P. Stafford during a shaving exercise. Apollo 10 was the fourth manned mission in NASA's Apollo space program. Launched on May 18, 1969, it was the F mission: a "dress rehearsal" for the first Moon landing, testing all of the components and procedures, just short of actually landing. The Lunar Module (LM) came to within 8.4 nautical miles (15.6 km) of the lunar surface, the point where the powered descent to the lunar surface would begin. Its success enabled the first landing to be attempted on Apollo 11 in July, 1969.
(credit: NASA-ALSJ)
Life aboard the Apollo 10 Command Module, Commander (CDR) Thomas P. Stafford during a shaving exercise. Apollo 10 was the fourth manned mission in NASA's Apollo space program. Launched on May 18, 1969, it was the F mission: a "dress rehearsal" for the first Moon landing, testing all of the components and procedures, just short of actually landing. The Lunar Module (LM) came to within 8.4 nautical miles (15.6 km) of the lunar surface, the point where the powered descent to the lunar surface would begin. Its success enabled the first landing to be attempted on Apollo 11 in July, 1969.
(credit: NASA-ALSJ)
Apollo 11, May 14, 1969
Buzz Aldrin is seen holding a model of the Lunar Module during a press conference, Apollo 11 was the spaceflight that landed the first humans on the Moon, Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, on July 20, 1969, at 20:18 UTC. Armstrong became the first to step onto the lunar surface six hours later on July 21 at 02:56 UTC. Armstrong spent about two and a half hours outside the spacecraft, Aldrin slightly less, and together they collected 47.5 pounds (21.5 kg) of lunar material for return to Earth. The third member of the mission, Michael Collins, piloted the command spacecraft alone in lunar orbit until Armstrong and Aldrin returned to it just under a day later for the trip back to Earth.
(credit: NASA-ALSJ)
Buzz Aldrin is seen holding a model of the Lunar Module during a press conference, Apollo 11 was the spaceflight that landed the first humans on the Moon, Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, on July 20, 1969, at 20:18 UTC. Armstrong became the first to step onto the lunar surface six hours later on July 21 at 02:56 UTC. Armstrong spent about two and a half hours outside the spacecraft, Aldrin slightly less, and together they collected 47.5 pounds (21.5 kg) of lunar material for return to Earth. The third member of the mission, Michael Collins, piloted the command spacecraft alone in lunar orbit until Armstrong and Aldrin returned to it just under a day later for the trip back to Earth.
(credit: NASA-ALSJ)
