Space shuttle Atlantis launch and photos

Space shuttle Atlantis launched Friday Atlantis races off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center right on time at 2:20 p.m. EDT, rising into a sky and capping a relatively problem-free countdown. Space shuttle Atlantis is speeding after the International Space Station for a Sunday morning hookup. The shuttle and its six astronauts will spend a week at the station, installing fresh batteries and a new Russian compartment.Atlantis rocketed into orbit Friday for the last time. It’s the 32nd flight for Atlantis in a quarter-century.
Two more shuttle flights remain. NASA is ending the program so it can focus on presidential-ordered trips to asteroids and Mars. NASA astronaut Ken Ham commands an all-veteran flight crew: Pilot Tony Antonelli, and Mission Specialists Michael Good, Garrett Reisman, Piers Sellers and Steve Bowen.