Space shuttle Atlantis soars on final voyage

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Space shuttle Atlantis thundered away on its final voyage to orbit Friday, hoisting an experienced crew of six and a full shipment of space station gear.

Atlantis sped through a perfectly clear afternoon sky, blazing a trail over the Atlantic before huge crowds eager to catch one of the few remaining shuttle launches.

Its destination is the International Space Station, which was over the South Pacific at the time of liftoff. The shuttle should catch up with the orbiting complex and its six residents Sunday.

More than 40,000 guests — the biggest launch-day crowd in years — descended on the Kennedy Space Center and the roads leading to it, all of them eager to witness Atlantis’ last launch. The shuttle obliged, roaring off the pad right on time.

“Good luck, godspeed and have a little fun up there,” launch director Mike Leinbach told the astronauts just before liftoff. He said he was speaking on behalf of all those who have worked on Atlantis since the beginning.

“If you don’t mind, we’ll take her out of the barn and make a few more laps around the planet,” replied commander Kenneth Ham.

The astronauts — all repeat space fliers and all men — couldn’t resist a little humor before they got down to business. They showed up for their steak and cheeseburger breakfast wearing blue and black smoking jackets, white shirts and black bow ties. It was probably the most formal attire ever worn by astronauts on launch day, even it was just for a quick photo.

The only concern during Friday’s countdown involved a small ball bearing found in Atlantis’ payload bay earlier this week. Engineers scrambled to determine that the bearing likely came from a spacewalk camera, and cleared the launch with just minutes remaining.

The 12-day mission is the last one for Atlantis, the fourth in NASA’s line of space shuttles. Only two flights remain after this one, by Discovery and Endeavour. NASA plans to end the 30-year program by the end of this year.

Atlantis rocketed into orbit for the first time in 1985. This will be its 32nd trip and the 132nd shuttle flight overall.

The shuttle is loaded with fresh batteries and a Russian-built compartment for the space station.

-- Associated Press