Final space shuttle mission lifts off
July 8th, 2011
11:51 AM ET

Final space shuttle mission lifts off

The space shuttle Atlantis lifted off Friday morning on the final mission of America's 30-year space-shuttle program.

The four-member crew blasted off on a 12-day mission just before 11:30 a.m. The four - all shuttle veterans - are on their way to deliver supplies to the International Space Station.

The possibility of storms had raised doubt about whether the launch would take place as planned, but NASA gave the shuttle a "go" for launch a few minutes before liftoff.

Thousands of people, including some who came to Kennedy Space Center three decades ago for the first launch, were gathered to watch. Almost a million people were expected to be on hand to witness the historic event.

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Filed under: Atlantis • NASA
soundoff (14 Responses)
  1. Andreas Moser

    Good luck!

    July 8, 2011 at 11:52 am | Report abuse |
  2. VEM

    IT IS A SHAME THE CLEARWATER 12 WERE NOT STRAPPED TO THE OUTSIDE OF THE SHUTTLE. They let a murderer go free. These 12 jurors are the real criminals. The pride of clearwater florida.

    July 8, 2011 at 11:54 am | Report abuse |
    • Rosanna

      I second what you said in your comment. Kinda horrifying this nonsense gets by all while watching a killer laugh all the way to the bank at some point. sick

      July 11, 2011 at 2:53 pm | Report abuse |
  3. Mekell

    The end of an era. What next?

    July 8, 2011 at 11:56 am | Report abuse |
  4. VEM

    Everyone from florida are either braindead idiots or inbred ignoramouses.

    July 8, 2011 at 11:57 am | Report abuse |
  5. Rocky

    ADRIAN!

    July 8, 2011 at 12:05 pm | Report abuse |
  6. Joey Isotta-Fraschini

    I know a lot of brilliant people who live in Florida.
    I know that some stupid folks live there too.

    July 8, 2011 at 12:08 pm | Report abuse |
  7. RUFFNUTT #5

    dos lobos kick your azz
    dos lobos kick your face
    dos lobos blast your ballz
    into outter space!!!!

    July 8, 2011 at 2:09 pm | Report abuse |
  8. HRH banasy

    @JIF:

    Hi. I agree.

    July 8, 2011 at 2:36 pm | Report abuse |
  9. dslguy

    As impressive as the whole space program has been i can honestly say i'm not sad to see it go as it has become a drain on the united states and those who run the program have found every way to get the maximim number of dollars out of it and got really greedy about it and so it's over because you could not control spending and yes fraud as it was never enough money and everybody wants more more more and to be paid the max amount of money possible and that did happen and you killed the program over your all personal greed, don't try to say you did'nt the proof is in the numbers.

    July 8, 2011 at 4:17 pm | Report abuse |
  10. Avser Bastian

    DICTATOR OBAMA = STALIN = BUSH or USA = SOVIET UNION....LEARN WHO, HOW, AND WHY RUINED YOU…FROM 911 TO WHITE AMERICAN REFUGEES IN EXILE SEEKING ASYLUM RIGHT NOW http://avsecbostjan.wordpress.com/ or http://avsecbostjan.blogspot.com WHO/WHY//HOW CREATED SCHOOL SHOOTINGS(Arizona incl.) – HAARP AUSTRALIAN FLOODS(Incl. deliberately busted oil pipe in gulf of Mexico) – LEARN ABOUT REAL HUMAN FLASH EATING MACHINE – WIKILEAKS is CIA – BREAST FEEDING INSANITY PROTESTS – FACEBOOK or CIABOOTH !!? - ESKIMO SARAH PALIN'S "BRIDGE TO NOWHERE" – NWO MULTICULTURALISM SWINE/PIG FLUE SYNDROME – NEWS/MEDIA OR SIMPLY BIG FAT VACUUM WORLD OF LIES !!?? – THE REAL DON'T ASK DON'T TELL, BUT DIE !!! – OBAMINATOR'S FREE HEALTH CARE PLANE or GENOCIDE BASED ON FORGIVE AND FORGET – UN-chef Ban Ki-moon or CHINESE BAN KEY MONKEY(who is he in reality) !!? – NEW WORLD ORDER POLITICAL PARTIES(not there for you, but instead to seal your faith for their own parliament pay$$ scale !!!) EURO DIC TRAITORS vs DICTATORS or what is worse !!? LEARN WHAT DO LIBYA AND EUROPE OR USA HAVE IN-COMMON !! AND FINALLY.....COMMUNISM IN EASTERN EUROPE TODAY IN 2011 !!! "SLOVENIA" TODAY, WHERE COMMUNIST GENOCIDE GOES ON 24/7 FOR CREATION OF GREATER BYZANTINE SERBIA UNDER RUSSIAN FLAG http://sloveniatoday.blogspot.com "SLOVENIA" WHERE GERMANS(also Croatians in Croatia) ARE GETTING WIPED OUT 66 YEARS AFTER WWII OR 20 YEARS SINCE THEIR "INDEPENDENCE"(independence on paper only). Is Merkel truly great diplomat or is simply trading our lives behind our backs with worst enemies(LIBERALISM = RETARDISM = COMMUNISM = IDIOTISM = CRIME = ZIONISM) !!?

    July 9, 2011 at 6:29 pm | Report abuse |
  11. Avser Bastian

    COMMUNISM IN EASTERN EUROPE TODAY(2011) !!! http://sloveniatoday.blogspot.com or http://easterneuropetoday.wordpress.com/ OR COMMUNIST GENOCIDE IN "SLOVENIA" WHERE GERMANS(also Croatians in Croatia) ARE GETTING WIPED OUT TODAY IN 2011 UNDER RUSSIAN FLAG AND GREATER BYZANTINE SERBIAN(new Yugoslavia) AGENDA 66 YEARS AFTER WWII OR 20 YEARS SINCE THEIR "INDEPENDENCE"(independence on paper only) JUST AS PREVIOUSLY IN VOJVODINA. Is Merkel truly great diplomat or is simply trading our lives behind our backs with worst enemies(LIBERALISM = RETARDISM = COMMUNISM = IDIOTISM = ZIONISM = CRIME) !!? Visit also DICTATOR OBAMA = STALIN = BUSH or USA = SOVIET UNION http://avsecbostjan.blogspot.com/ or http://avsecbostjan.wordpress.com/ ...TO LEARN WHO, HOW, AND WHY RUINED YOU…FROM 911 TO WHITE AMERICAN REFUGEES IN EXILE SEEKING ASYLUM RIGHT NOW !!! TIME TO DETERMINE WHOSE INDEPENDENCE/AMERICA, WE CELEBRATE TODAY(who want to erase us and denies us the right to exist) !!!

    July 9, 2011 at 6:33 pm | Report abuse |
  12. ben

    @dslguy: news flash, the space program isn't dead it's just changing. Instead of manned missions you'll be seeing more unmanned probes, and yes eventually now that the shuttle program has finally come to an end(about 17 years too late) we'll begin work on developing a rocket with the capability of reaching Mars. The death of the shuttle program is long overdue because it's been holding us back in lower earth orbit. Look for many exciting things out of the new space program in the coming years dslguy, BTW without the space program you wouldn't have a job if you work in the cable/satellite business as your moniker implies.

    July 9, 2011 at 10:12 pm | Report abuse |
  13. B. Blusy

    Well said! Looking foqward to seeing what the future holds for my grandchildren that might want to be astronauts!

    July 10, 2011 at 3:02 am | Report abuse |
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