Last U.S. space shuttle voyage takes off

RUSS LABOUNTY/Van Wert independent

Cheers and applause filled the air and tears were shed as the last shuttle into space, Atlantis, lifted off and headed to the International Space Station for the final time at 11:29 a.m. Friday. Launch control held the countdown at T-minus 31 seconds to make sure the retractable arm, or beanie cap, would not swing back into the shuttle during lift-off. After 2 minutes and 30 seconds, the count was resumed and Atlantis began its historic journey (click here for more photos).

The shuttle program began 30 years and 3 months ago with the launch of STS-1 space shuttle Columbia on April 12, 1981. Columbia, as well as the Challenger space shuttle, were both lost in tragic accidents that also took the lives of 14 astronauts and left Discovery, Endeavour, and Atlantis to carry out the remaining missions.

There is at least one “first” involved with space shuttle Atlantis’ STS-135 mission, a flight notable for its lasts: the crew is taking the first iPhone into space to help with experiments aboard the International Space Station.

Along with the first iPhone, the crew of Atlantis is bringing along a number of items commemorating what will be the final mission of space shuttle program. For instance, a flag from the first shuttle flight in 1981 will be carried to the station and left there until the first commercial spaceflight to the station, when NASA astronauts will retrieve it.

The astronauts, Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, have allocated a number of unique items that will become commemoratives for several organizations after they return to Earth.

The U.S. Honor Flag also will fly aboard Atlantis. Begun as a tribute following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the American flag serves as a traveling memorial to heroes who lost their lives while serving their communities and country. Among the unusual things headed into space is a recipe card from one of the dishes served at Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NASCAR is well represented on the mission with a cap from Joe Gibbs Racing and black flags from Texas Motor Speedway and the NASCAR organization on the roster of items.

More than 500 STS-135 mission patches are tucked inside Atlantis for the flight, a common take-along for all shuttle missions, along with 800 small American flags that typically are handed out after a mission as awards and recognitions.

Atlantis will deliver a year’s worth of supplies to the space station during its 12-day mission and carries the Raffaello multipurpose logistics module to deliver supplies, logistics and spare parts to the ISS. The mission also is flying a system to investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing spacecraft and returning a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems.