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Shuttle Atlantis begins descent | |
(about 3 hours later) | |
The space shuttle Atlantis has begun its descent to Earth, after bad weather at the Florida landing site forced Nasa to cancel an earlier attempt. | |
The orbiter will now have to land Edwards Air Force Base in California, the US space agency said. | |
At 1524 BST (1024 EDT), Atlantis fired its engines for a few minutes to slow itself down enough to begin re-entry. | |
The shuttle is now scheduled to touch down at 1639 BST (1139 EDT) at the military base in the Mojave Desert. | |
Atlantis is returning after an ambitious and risky mission to refurbish the Hubble telescope. | Atlantis is returning after an ambitious and risky mission to refurbish the Hubble telescope. |
Five spacewalks | Five spacewalks |
The shuttle has enough supplies to remain in orbit until Monday if necessary. | The shuttle has enough supplies to remain in orbit until Monday if necessary. |
Its mission was intended to give a new lease of life to Hubble. | Its mission was intended to give a new lease of life to Hubble. |
The orbiting observatory is regarded as one of the most important scientific tools ever built. | The orbiting observatory is regarded as one of the most important scientific tools ever built. |
The fifth and final mission to service Hubble has been hailed as a great success. | The fifth and final mission to service Hubble has been hailed as a great success. |
Over five spacewalks, astronauts installed new instruments and thermal blankets, repaired two existing instruments, replaced gyroscopes and batteries. | Over five spacewalks, astronauts installed new instruments and thermal blankets, repaired two existing instruments, replaced gyroscopes and batteries. |
The only disappointment was the failure to restore the high-resolution channel (one of three) on Hubble's main camera - the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). | The only disappointment was the failure to restore the high-resolution channel (one of three) on Hubble's main camera - the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). |
The US space agency cleared Atlantis for its fiery re-entry into Earth's atmosphere following in-flight inspections of its heat shield by the crew. | The US space agency cleared Atlantis for its fiery re-entry into Earth's atmosphere following in-flight inspections of its heat shield by the crew. |
The Hubble telescope was released from the shuttle's robotic arm on Tuesday. | The Hubble telescope was released from the shuttle's robotic arm on Tuesday. |
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