NASA fuels space shuttle Atlantis for final voyage

[onehandle]

Source: AP

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – NASA fueled space shuttle Atlantis on Friday for its final journey, a delivery trip to the International Space Station that will provide fresh batteries and extra room.

Atlantis was slated to blast off at 2:20 p.m. Everything was going well in the countdown and the weather was looking favorable. Forecasters were sticking with their 70 percent odds of good weather, but a NASA spokesman said that likely would improve as the morning wore on.

The launch team began pumping more than 500,000 gallons of fuel into Atlantis' massive external tank well before dawn, just as the six astronauts assigned to the mission woke up. The all-male crew downed a hearty breakfast: medium-rare steaks and French fries for three of them, a cheeseburger for another and sandwiches for the remaining two.

The 12-day mission is the last one for Atlantis, the fourth in NASA's line of space shuttles. Only two flights remain after this one, by Discovery and Endeavour. NASA hopes to end the 30-year program by the end of this year.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100514/ap_on_sc/us_space_shuttle