Shuttle Atlantis streaks across the black, morning sky as it lifted off from the coast of Florida heading out over the Atlantic Ocean.
Click on image for full size
Courtesy of NASA

Related links:

NASA's Space Shuttle Page

Atlantis Soars to the ISS
News story originally written on July 13, 2001

The Shuttle Atlantis lifted off in the early, morning hours on Thursday, July 12th. The shuttle roared into the sky with a new and improved block II engine. Working together with the shuttle's other two engines, this new engine will provide an even safer, more reliable ride for the shuttle. Each of the three main engines that lift the shuttle into orbit is 14 feet long, weighs about 7,000 pounds and is 7.5 feet in diameter at the end of the nozzle.

Atlantis is scheduled to dock with the International Space Station (ISS) later tonight. Once docked, two mission specialists from the shuttle mission, Mike Gernhardt and Jim Reilly, will perform three spacewalks to install a new Joint Airlock onto the station. This new component of the station will allow for future, more easily accesible spacewalks from the ISS.

Atlantis will return to Earth on July 22, 2001, carrying its five crew members, Commander Steve Lindsey, Pilot Charlie Hobaugh, Mission Specialists Mike Gernhardt, Jim Reilly and Janet Kavandi.

Last modified July 13, 2001 by Jennifer Bergman.

You might also be interested in:

Traveling Nitrogen Classroom Activity Kit

Check out our online store - minerals, fossils, books, activities, jewelry, and household items!...more

1999--A Year in Review...

It was another exciting and frustrating year for the space science program. It seemed that every step forward led to one backwards. Either way, NASA led the way to a great century of discovery. Unfortunately,...more

STS-95 Launch: "Let the wings of Discovery lift us on to the future."

The Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off from Kennedy Space Center at 2:19 p.m. EST, October 29th. The sky was clear and the weather was great as Discovery took 8 1/2 minutes to reach orbit for the Unitied...more

Moon Found Orbiting Asteroid

A moon was discovered orbiting the asteroid, Eugenia. This is only the second time in history that a satellite has been seen circling an asteroid. A special mirror allowed scientists to find the moon...more

U.S. is Fed Up with Russia

Will Russia ever put the service module for the International Space Station in space? NASA officials are demanding an answer from the Russian government. The necessary service module is currently waiting...more

More on Recent Coronal Mass Ejection

During a period of about two days in early May, 1998, the ACE spacecraft was immersed in plasma associated with a coronal mass ejection (CME). The SWICS instrument on ACE, which determines unambiguously...more

Mother Nature's Air Conditioning

J.S. Maini of the Canadian Forest Service has referred to forests as the "heart and lungs of the world." Forests reduce soil erosion, maintain water quality, contribute to atmospheric humidity and cloud...more

Planetary Alignment 2002

In late April through mid-May 2002, all five naked-eye planets are visible simultaneously in the night sky! This is includes Mercury which is generally very hard to see because of its proximity to the...more

Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA