Space Shuttle Endeavour Completes Its Final Mission

At 2:34 a.m. Eastern Time this morning the completed its final journey to orbit and back when it touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It was the penultimate mission for the 30-year shuttle program, with the final mission—which will undertake—scheduled for July.

Even as the shuttle program nears retirement, NASA remains optimistic about the space program, which will push forward with a mix of commercial craft, robot probes, and a based on the Orion spacecraft.

"We are very proud of Endeavour's legacy," said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden in a statement. "As we begin the transition from the shuttle program to the commercial transportation of our crews and cargo, our ability to tackle big challenges remains steadfast and will ensure that NASA reaches even more destinations farther in the solar system."

Endeavour's main goal on this mission was to deliver an Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer to the International Space Station (ISS). The device will scan the cosmos for traces of antimatter, dark matter, and strange matter, and those observations could lead to new insight about how the universe was created. The mission was also notable for mission specialist Mike Fincke, who set a new record for time a U.S. astronaut has spent in space at 382 days, beating previous record holder Peggy Whitson.

Mark Kelly was commander of the Endeavour mission. Kelly is also the husband of Gabrielle Giffords, the Congresswoman who was shot in an Arizona shopping mall in January. Giffords, who is recovering in a Houston rehab center, attended the launch on May 16, though the launch had originally been scheduled for April 29.

The Endeavour launch was hit with many setbacks. A faulty heater led to NASA scrubbing the inital launch, and scheduling difficulties produced further delays. But on May 16 at 8:56 a.m., the shuttle finally took to the skies.

Now the spotlight falls on Space Shuttle Atlantis, which has already been towed to its launch pad. Atlantis will be crewed by commander Chris Ferguson, pilot Doug Hurley, and mission specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim. The primary purpose of the mission is to resupply the ISS, but it will also investigate the potential for robotically refueling spacecraft. The launch is currently scheduled for July 8.