The Last Launch: Space Shuttle Atlantis

Today marks the closing chapter of NASA’s Space Shuttle program with the final launch of Atlantis from Cape Canaveral.  For 30 years, NASA and the United States have helped pave the way for space exploration, launching 134 missions since its inception.  The Space Shuttle program is to our generation what the moon race was to our parents and grandparents, and I for one am sad to see it go.  As a kid I lobbied to attend space camp and although I didn’t get the opportunity to go, I did get to see a shuttle launch while spending a summer in Florida.  You don’t have to be some space geek to appreciate a shuttle launching into space, it’s really one of the most impressive things to watch and experience.  Sadly, today’s launch is the last on American soil and marks the end of a great story.