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United Space AllianceSpace ShuttleLaunch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA
STS-125
Launched
May 11, 2009
Summary
STS-125 launched on an United Space Alliance Space Shuttle from Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA on May 11, 2009. It was United Space Alliance's 42nd launch, 2nd this year and humanity's 4,981st orbital launch attempt. It was the 126th Space Shuttle flight and the 2nd this year. The payload was bound for low Earth orbit (LEO). It reached a 210 × 559 km orbit inclined 28.5°. 7 crew members flew: Andrew J. Feustel, John M. Grunsfeld, Scott Altman, Mike Massimino, Gregory C. Johnson, Michael T. Good and K. Megan McArthur. The spacecraft was Space Shuttle Atlantis (OV-104). One object from this launch is catalogued.
- Watch
- STS-125 launch from T-2 to MECO - High DefinitionSpacevidcast (now TMRO -- see new channel)
- Vehicle
- Space Shuttle · United Space AllianceSpace Shuttle
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Astrophysics · Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
- Milestone
- 126th Space Shuttle flight · 2nd this yearUnited Space Alliance's 42nd launch2nd this yearhumanity's 4,981st orbital launch attempt27th orbital launch attempt this year
Crew
Andrew J. FeustelMission Specialist · NASA · age 43 · first flight
John M. GrunsfeldMission Specialist · NASA · age 50 · 5th flight
Scott AltmanCommander · NASA · age 49 · 4th flight
Mike MassiminoMission Specialist · NASA · age 46 · 2nd flight
Gregory C. JohnsonPilot · NASA · age 54 · first flight
Michael T. GoodMission Specialist · NASA · age 46 · first flight
K. Megan McArthurMission Specialist · NASA · age 37 · first flight
Spacecraft
Space Shuttle Atlantis (OV-104)
Space Shuttle Atlantis (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV‑104) is a Space Shuttle orbiter vehicle belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States. Constructed by the Rockwell International company in Southern California and delivered to the Kennedy Space Center in Eastern Florida in April 1985, Atlantis is the fourth operational and the second-to-last Space Shuttle built. Its maiden flight was STS-51-J from 3 to 7 October 1985. Atlantis embarked on its 33rd and final mission, also the final mission of a space shuttle, STS-135, on 8 July 2011. STS-134 by Endeavour was expected to be the final flight before STS-135 was authorized in October 2010. STS-135 took advantage of the processing for the STS-335 Launch On Need mission that would have been necessary if STS-134's crew became stranded in orbit. Atlantis landed for the final time at the Kennedy Space Center on 21 July 2011. By the end of its final mission, Atlantis had orbited the Earth a total of 4,848 times, traveling nearly 126,000,000 mi (203,000,000 km) or more than 525 times the distance from the Earth to the Moon.
- Destination: Low Earth Orbit
- Mission length: 12 days
- Docked May 13, 2009 at Hubble Space Telescope
Space Shuttle Atlantis successfully landed at Edwards Air Force Base after this mission.
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Atlantis (STS-125) · NORAD 34933 · 2009-025 · Space-Track
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- TBA - TO BE ASSIGNED
- Object ID
- 2009-025A
- Epoch
- 2009-05-11 18:53:59 UTC
- Mean motion
- 15.63594146 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0257875
- Inclination
- 28.4696°
- Ascending node
- 340.9251°
- Arg. of perigee
- 54.516°
- Mean anomaly
- 210.2591°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 0
- B*
- 0.0000102
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: LEO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
1 catalogued: 1 payload; none still in orbit
- Atlantis (STS-125) · NORAD 34933 · landed May 24, 2009
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
STS-125, or HST-SM4 (Hubble Space Telescope Servicing Mission 4), was the fifth and final space shuttle mission to the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Space Shuttle Atlantis carried two new instruments to the Hubble Space Telescope, the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph and the Wide Field Camera 3. The mission also replaced a Fine Guidance Sensor, six gyroscopes, and two battery unit modules to allow the telescope to continue to function at least through 2014. The crew also installed new thermal blanket insulating panels to provide improved thermal protection, and a soft-capture mechanism that would aid in the safe de-orbiting of the telescope by an unmanned spacecraft at the end of its operational lifespan.
Pad
Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA
87th launch from Launch Complex 39A, 2nd this year · 143rd from Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA
224 launches from this pad · 283 from Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA
56 days after the previous launch from this pad
Questions
When did STS-125 launch?
STS-125 launched on May 11, 2009. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch STS-125?
Coverage: STS-125 launch from T-2 to MECO - High Definition. Watch the replay
What rocket launched STS-125?
Space Shuttle, flown by United Space Alliance. Space Shuttle spec sheet
Where did STS-125 launch from?
Launch Complex 39A, Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA.
What orbit did STS-125 reach?
It reached a 210 × 559 km orbit inclined 28.5°.
Which program is STS-125 part of?
Space Shuttle. About Space Shuttle