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Feb 20, 2008 9:52 am US/Eastern
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Space Shuttle Atlantis Lands Safely
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) ―
Space shuttle Atlantis and its crew returned to Earth on
Wednesday, wrapping up a 5 million-mile journey highlighted by the successful
delivery of a new European lab to the international space station.
The shuttle and its seven astronauts landed at 9:07 a.m. at NASA's
spaceport at Kennedy
Space Center,
where the crew's families and top space program managers gathered to welcome
them home.
Commander Stephen Frick safely guided Atlantis down through
a sky dotted with thin, wispy clouds and onto the runway.
"We're extremely happy to be home," Frick told
Mission Control.
NASA wanted Atlantis back as soon as possible to clear the
way for the Navy to shoot down a dying spy satellite on the verge of smashing
into Earth with a load of toxic fuel. The missile could be launched as early as
Wednesday night from a warship in the Pacific.
Atlantis circled Earth 202 times during its mission, which
began Feb. 7. Nine of those 13 days were spent at the international space station,
where the two crews installed the European science lab, Columbus, that was ferried up by the shuttle.
A French astronaut, Leopold Eyharts, remained at the
orbiting outpost with an American and a Russian to get Columbus up and running. He replaced NASA
astronaut Daniel Tani, who was returning home aboard Atlantis after 120 days in
space.
Tani's mission was marred by the death of his 90-year-old
mother in a traffic accident in December, halfway through his space station
stay. Even though the astronaut was able to listen in to her funeral, he said
it was difficult being so far away at such a tragic time. He couldn't wait to
be reunited with his wife, two young daughters and other family members.
After two months of delay because of fuel gauge trouble, Atlantis
ended up with an unusually trouble-free flight. Heaters for a set of small
thrusters failed earlier this week, but posed no concern for re-entry. And a
radiator hose that was bent before the flight retracted neatly into its box
when the payload bay doors were closed in the wee hours for landing.
NASA's next mission is just three weeks away. Endeavour is scheduled
to blast off with the first piece of Japan's massive space station lab
on March 11. The second piece of the Japanese Kibo lab -- Kibo means hope --
was supposed to go up in April aboard Discovery, but has been delayed until May
because of shuttle fuel tank work.
Atlantis, meanwhile, won't fly again until the end of
August, when it takes a team of repairmen to the Hubble Space Telescope for one
final tune-up.
(© 2008 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)