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Emily Lakdawalla • May 11, 2009

Atlantis Launches on a Final Mission to Hubble

Space shuttle Atlantis with its seven-member crew launched at 2:01 p.m. EDT Monday from NASA's Kennedy Space Center on the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission.

Atlantis' 11-day mission will include five spacewalks to refurbish Hubble with state-of-the-art science instruments designed to improve the telescope's discovery capabilities by up to 70 times while extending its lifetime through at least 2014.

Atlantis Headed to Hubble

Atlantis Headed to Hubble

nder a dry, hot, cloud-washed Florida sky, space shuttle Atlantis roars off Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida with its crew of seven for a rendezvous with NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. The launch was at 2:01 p.m. EDT on May 11, 2009.

» Fueling Atlantis! T Minus 6 Hours and Counting

» Atlantis Exposed to the Heavens -- T Minus 14 Hours from Blast-off to Hubble

» "Go" at T-2 days from launch -- Hubble Science Instruments Preview

» Astronauts Fly into Cape. Countdown Clock Ticking for Mission to Save "The People's Telescope"

» NASA's Final Servicing Mission to the Hubble Space Telescope