The Space Shuttle Atlantis is mere hours from landing and it couldn't have come at a better time! Yesterday, July 20th, was the 42nd anniversary of the Apollo 11, the Eagle, landing on the Moon and man making a great leap for mankind. Just like the moon missions, all great things come to an end, and at 09:56 UTC (05:56 EDT/02:56 PST) the Space Shuttle era will come to an end, but only to be replaced by the next great era of space technology.
The last Space Shuttle Mission ever, STS-135, took off from from Launch Complex 39 (39-LC) at Kenedy Space Center, nearly being delayed by weather. Carrying supplies to the ISS, STS-135 will keep the ISS running well after the retirement of the space shuttle. On Tuesday this week, after its mission at the ISS complete, the ISS undocked from the ISS. According to NASA the weather isn't just good, but the skies are reported as "severe clear."
To keep up on the progress of Atlantis' descent make sure to follow NASA's Atlantis RSS feed. You can also follow it on Google Earth (literally follow! very cool), NASA TV, Spacevidcast, and SpaceFlight Now. Make sure not to miss it because you aren't ever going to get a chance to watch the Space Shuttle live on landing again.
And that's it folks, after its conception in the 1960s the Space Shuttle Program is closing its doors.
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