STS-129 Shuttle Mission to the International Space Station Launches Monday 19:28 GMT

VaderDSL said:
Lovely landing :) love the two extremes between the launch and landing with the shuttle, you get the violence and sheer awe of the launch combined with the peace and calm and almost serene nature of the landing.
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Absolutely, though I'm often amazed just how much noise there seems to be considering it's an un-powered descent.

SDK^ said:
A picture perfect landing from here in Florida :)
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Lucky you. :)

Landing was picture perfect, but the approach wasn't (by their exacting standards). First time I've heard (or at least paid attention to) calls saying they were off course (if only slightly) at the HAC. Get so used to hearing them calling 'on at the 180' and 'on at the 90' that it grabs the attention when they call something different.

Welcome home Atlantis. 5 missions remaining.
 
Berserker said:
Welcome home Atlantis. 5 missions remaining.
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Here they are:

STS-130
Launch Target: Feb. 4, 2010, at 5:52 a.m. EST
Shuttle: Endeavour
Duration: 12 days

STS-131
Launch Target: March 18, 2010,at 1:34 p.m. EDT
Shuttle: Discovery
Duration: 12 days

STS-132
Launch Target: May 14, 2010, at 2:28 p.m. EDT
Shuttle: Atlantis
Duration: 11 days

STS-133
Launch Target: Sept. 16, 2010, at 11:57 a.m. EDT
Shuttle: Discovery
Duration: 12 days

STS-134
Launch Target: July 29, 2010, at 7:51 a.m. EDT
Shuttle: Endeavour
Duration: 10 days


For those of you who managed to miss the mission and have an hour to spare, enjoy:


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Don't forget that life still goes on at the ISS. Three of the crew members have left aboard a Soyuz spacecraft and arrived back on earth:


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Expedition 21 Flight Engineer and Soyuz Commander Roman Romanenko, European Space Agency Flight Engineer Frank De Winne and Canadian Space Agency Flight Engineer Robert Thirsk have returned to Earth, landing on the steppes of Kazakhstan in their Soyuz TMA-15 spacecraft. Landing occurred at 2:15 a.m. EST, 1:15 p.m. Kazakhstan time.

All three crew members were reported to be in good condition. Due to icy conditions at the landing site, the landing support team recalled its helicopters to their bases in Kustanai and Arkalyk, Kazakhstan. Instead the team arrived in all-terrain vehicles from nearby Arkalyk to extract the Expedition 21 crew members from the Soyuz crew module. Unless weather conditions improve, the crew will make the 50-mile journey back to Arkalyk by land.

Romanenko, De Winne and Thirsk spent 188 days in space, 186 of those aboard the orbiting International Space Station. The three arrived at the station in May as part of Expedition 20, which marked the start of six-person crew operations aboard the station. With their arrival, all five of the international partner agencies – NASA, the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) – were represented on orbit for the first time.
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From: http://www.nasa.gov/home/index.html


See you again next year. :)
 
Probably the best video of the mission, a very informal view by the Atlantis crew, give yourself some time to listen to this, great stuff!


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Time to say goodnight


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:)
 
Well done Atlantis crew, and thanks to everyone who keeps this thread updated. It's good to know there are still plenty of people who enjoy space exploration, since it seems the majority of the population now either don't want it or just don't care.
 
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