July 8th - on this day in 2011, the final launch of the Space Shuttle program took place when Atlantis lifted off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center for the STS-135 mission to the International Space Station. The final Space Shuttle crew included only four astronauts: Commander Christopher Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists, Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim. On this last mission the Space Shuttle carried 12,890 kg of payload mass to the orbital outpost. | NASAS

As we prepare for the first crewed mission from American soil to the ISS since the Shuttle era, we remember Atlantis. The STS-135 crew landed safely on runway 15 at 5:57 a.m. EDT at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility in Florida, ending a 13-day journey of more than five million miles. It was the final and 133rd landing in shuttle history. The STS-135 crew consisted of Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandra Magnus and Rex Walheim. #NASA #NASAhistory #

2.4K views · 337 reactions | NASA Ascent Imagery highlights of STS-135's launch 12 years ago today, as Atlantis closed out the 30-year career of the Space Shuttle. These NASA videos were always amazing, using clips from the 100+ engineering cameras used to film Shuttle launches. Full video: https://youtu.be/rVJDYI1BQA4 | NASASpaceflight.com | Facebook