STS-129 (Atlantis)
STS-129 (Atlantis)
Launch Date
November 16, 2009
Craft
Space Shuttle
Status
Past
Crew
6
STS-129 (Atlantis)
STS-129 (Atlantis)
Launch Date
November 16, 2009
Craft
Space Shuttle
Status
Past
Crew
6
Overview
The 31st flight of Space Shuttle Atlantis delivered 12,532 kg of spare parts and components to the International Space Station. Randy Bresnik became a father while flying this mission. His Space Shuttle and ISS crewmates congratulated him with candy cigars, as smoking is not permitted on the ISS. This marked the second and most recent time two people of African descent flew a mission together.
Crafts
Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The first reusable launch and landing spacecraft, the Space Shuttle began a new chapter of human space exploration. It launched like a rocket but landed on a runway like a plane. Shuttle crews deployed dozens of commercial satellites and two interplanetary probes to Venus and Jupiter. The Shuttle served as a mini space station and hosted hundreds of biomedical, psychological, physiological, materials science, and physics experiments that have directly benefited life on Earth. The five flight-worthy Shuttles -- Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour -- flew 135 missions over 30 years. The Shuttles helped construct the Russian Mir space station and brought nearly 80% of the International Space Station to orbit. Shuttles also deployed and serviced the Hubble Space Telescope.