Published July 10, 2011
HOUSTON – The space shuttle Atlantis is poised to arrive at the International Space Station today July 10, in what will be the very last time that a shuttle docks to the massive orbiting outpost.
Atlantis launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Friday (July 8) to begin a two-day chase of the space station in orbit. The shuttle and its four-person crew are expected to link up with the station at 11:07 a.m. EDT (1507 GMT) today.
Atlantis' STS-135 mission is the last ever flight of NASA's space shuttle program and today's docking will mark the final time that an orbiter parks at the complex.
The agency is ending its 30-year space shuttle program to focus on space exploration to destinations deeper in space, such as an asteroid or Mars. As with the two other orbiters in NASA's shuttle fleet, Atlantis will be retired for good following the end of its STS-135 flight.
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