Yeah. Yawn. An era will be soon coming to an end.  The Space shuttle Atlantis blasted off today. Okay. Is on its way to orbit for the last time. Yeah.  Atlantis and an experienced crew of six blasted off  this afternoon, Friday, May 14th. Yeah. The shuttle is bound for the International Space Station. And?  It should reach the orbiting complex Sunday. So what? Routine, right?

Today is the start of Atlantis’s final planned mission. The Atlantis will be processed for use as an emergency rescue vehicle to support NASA’s final planned shuttle flight late this year or early next. Then the shuttle fleet will be retired. Okay. "A camera (was) mounted on the shuttle’s external tank provided dramatic views of the climb to space." Yeah. "Strapped in on Atlantis’s flight deck were Capt. Kenneth T. Ham of the Navy, the commander; Cmdr. Dominic A. Antonelli, also of the Navy, the pilot; the flight engineer, Michael T. Good, a retired Air Force colonel; and Garrett E. Reisman, veteran of a three-month stay aboard the space station in 2008. Seated on the shuttle’s lower deck were Capt. Stephen G. Bowen of the Navy, a former submariner, and Piers J. Sellers ..." Sure. Yawn!