129- NASA STS-129 Official NASA Lapel Pin
NASA STS-129 Official NASA Lapel Pin
The spare parts delivered to the International Space Station by Atlantis during the STS-129 mission will mean spare years on the station’s life once the space shuttle fleet is retired. With only one U.S. module left to deliver, the Space Shuttle Program is turning its attention to helping the space station build up a store of replacement parts. There are only half a dozen flights left in the shuttle’s manifest before they stop flying, and as the only vehicle large enough to carry many of the big pieces of equipment into space, several of the flights are devoted to the task. This is the first, however, and as the first this mission is dedicated to taking up the spares of the highest priority.
For the mission patch of STS-129, the sun shines brightly on the International Space Station above and the United States below representing the bright future of U.S. human spaceflight. Image: NASA
Attired in training versions of their shuttle launch and entry suits, these six astronauts take a break from training to pose for the STS-129 crew portrait. Image: NASA
