Touchdown
Atlantis lands for the final time on the morning of July 21 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center after 200 orbits around Earth.
Final Separation
This picture of Atlantis was photographed from the International Space Station as the orbiting complex and the shuttle performed their relative separation in the early hours of July 19.
Last Spacewalk
Spacewalker Mike Fossum rides on the International Space Station’s robotic arm as he carries the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment on the final scheduled spacewalk during a shuttle mission.
Saying Goodbye
This image of the ISS was taken by Atlantis’ STS-135 crew during a fly-around as the shuttle departed the station July 19.
Atlantis First Flight Crew
The crew assigned to the STS-51J mission included Mission Specialist Robert L. Stewart (left, seated), Commander Karol J. Bobko and Pilot Ronald J. Grabe.
Atlantis Maiden Launch
Atlantis was delivered to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in April 1985. Its first mission was to deliver a communications satellite for the Department of Defense.
Atlantis First to Dock With Mir
Atlantis is docked to Russia’s Mir Space Station and was photographed by the Mir-19 crew in July 1995.
Assembling the ISS
Atlantis’ STS-115 mission resumes assembly of the International Space Station after a hiatus of four years.
Spacewalk Over Beautiful Earth
With the beautiful Earth below, spacewalker Joe Tanner works to install the P3/P4 truss segment on the space station in 2006.
Atlantis Delivers Galileo to Space
In October 1989, Atlantis carried a crew of five and the spacecraft Galileo, which was deployed on a six-year voyage to Jupiter.