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Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on its last space flight, a round-trip mission to the International Space Station. The 12-day flight is doubly historic since it is the 135th and final mission in the 30-year history of NASA’s space shuttle program. “It’s been our honor to support the space shuttle program the past three decades,” said Brig. Gen. Ed Wilson, 45th Space Wing commander. “We’re all saddened to see this historic era come to an end, but we look forward with hope and enthusiasm for what lies ahead in our nation’s human spaceflight program.” Atlantis is ferrying supplies and spare parts to ISS. The four-person crew includes mission specialist Rex Walheim, a retired Air Force colonel. During the mission, the crew will investigate the potential for robotically refueling satellites. One space walk is also planned. (Cape Canaveral report and second report) (NASA’s STS-135 background document; caution, large file.) (See also our initial coverage.)
Since President Donald Trump first unveiled his “Golden Dome” missile defense initiative in late January, much of the focus for it has been focused on space—how the Pentagon may deploy dozens, if not hundreds, of sensors and interceptors into orbit to protect the continental U.S. from missile barrages. But the Air…