The space shuttle Atlantis commenced its journey to the International Space Station after it was fruitfully launched on Monday from the Kennedy Space Center by the United States Space agency NASA.
The shuttle is on its eleven day expedition with the mission of providing the requisite spare parts and supplies to the space station which would enable the space station to fulfill its purpose of operating as a orbiting lab for an extended period of time. Currently, the space station orbits the earth at an distance of about 350km from its surface. Several pictures have been put up on the web since its launch.13 tons of spare parts are being carried on the Atlantis.
After 2003’s mishap with Columbia, that got its wing punctured with debris and resulted in the death of all the astronauts on board, it has become more of an excruciatingly cautious procedure to conduct a new space mission.
In its mission, Atlantis carried six astronauts along with 27000 pounds of gyroscopes, ammonia tanks and a variety of other equipment. As the launch was about to take place, director Mike Leinback implied that the launch is expected to be go unimpeded as the weather was supportive and other impediments have been taken care off.
The term “Atlantis “ is the embodiment of rich heritage of U.S.A. cult. Precisely, it connotes a new realm , where regimes are iconic. Bacon’s essay in the year 1627, talks of The New Atlantis, a utopian society in America.
It is being presumed that Atlantis would be encountering the space station around Wednesday and would provide the vital supplies which in turn would play a pivotal role in increasing the life span of the space station. Atlantis which is the fourth set to be constructed,is planned to fly till the year 2010 when the shuttle program would come to its finale. The launching event was also attended by thousands of enthusiasts who cheered as the space shuttle blasted off and began its journey.
