Four missions remain as Endeavour blasts towards ISS

by Stevie Smith - Feb 8 2010, 10:16

Successfully fuelled and free of any weather-based hindrances, the space shuttle Endeavour has completed the final night launch scheduled for NASA’s aging fleet and is presently winging its way towards the orbiting International Space Station (ISS).

STS-130 is officially underway. Image: Matthew Simantov/Flickr.

The Endeavour and her crew of six astronauts cleared the launch pad at Kennedy Space Center at 0414 EST (0914 GMT) on Monday morning, illuminating the darkened Atlantic skyline with an eruption of roaring flame.Speaking with Reuters about the final night launch, which leaves only four missions until the fleet’s official retirement, shuttle program manager Mike Moses described the blast-off as “a little bittersweet” insofar as it mean NASA’s stalwart orbiter is “one closer to the end.”Endeavour is expected to arrive at the $10 billion USD space station on Wednesday, February 10. Once safely docked with the ISS, the Endeavour’s crew will unload and help install the station’s final U.S. module, which includes a seven-windowed cupola offering residents panoramic viewpoints of the Earth and the station exterior.Endeavour had initially been pencilled in for a launch on Sunday morning, but NASA was forced to scrub that particular attempt when low cloud moved in over Florida’s Cape Canaveral a matter of minutes before the final countdown.Watch NASA's official launch video by clicking here.

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Four missions remain as Endeavour blasts towards ISS

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