Today’s photo was featured on APOD last week, and probably several other places by now, but that’s because it’s an AMAZING image. Taken from the ISS, it shows Space Shuttle Endeavour approaching the station to dock.

What’s that approaching? Astronauts on board the International Space Station first saw it far in the distance. Soon it enlarged to become a dark silhouette. As it came even closer, the silhouette appeared to be a spaceship. Finally, at just past 11 pm (CST) last Tuesday, the object, revealed to be the Space Shuttle Endeavour, docked as expected with the Earth-orbiting space station. Pictured above, Endeavour was imaged near Earth’s horizon as it approached, where several layers of the Earth’s atmosphere were visible. Directly behind the shuttle is the mesosphere, which appears blue. The atmospheric layer that appears white is the stratosphere, while the orange layer is Earth’s Troposphere.

One of the things delivered to the International Space Station this trip is the Cupola, a seven-windowed dome giving the residents a 360° view. Above, removing launch restraint bolts from the Cupola’s windows:

ISS022-E-066884 (17 Feb. 2010) — NASA astronaut Nicholas Patrick, STS-130 mission specialist, participates in the mission’s third and final session of extravehicular activity (EVA) as construction and maintenance continue on the International Space Station. During the five-hour, 48-minute spacewalk, Patrick and astronaut Robert Behnken (out of frame), mission specialist, completed all of their planned tasks, removing insulation blankets and removing launch restraint bolts from each of the Cupola’s seven windows.

Below, moving it from place to place with the robotic arm (it’s in the middle of the picture, still covered with insulation blankets):

In the grasp of the Canadarm2, the cupola was relocated from the forward port to the Earth-facing port of the International Space Station’s newly installed Tranquility node. The cupola is a robotic control station with six windows around its sides and another in the center that will provide a panoramic view of Earth, celestial objects and visiting spacecrafts. With the installation of Tranquility and cupola, the space station is about 90 percent complete.

Image Credit: NASA

And here is the final result, courtesy of astronaut Noguchi Soichi:

“Let there be light! Cupola windows open toward Sahara desert. Priceless!”

EDIT: And here’s a hi-res NASA image taken just after, can see the Sahara better — but Soichi was FIRST. ;)

ISS022-E-066972 (17 Feb. 2010) — This image is the first taken through a first of its kind “bay window” on the International Space Station, the seven-windowed Cupola. The image shows the Sahara Desert spread out through the array of windows. The Cupola will house controls for the station robotics and will be a location where crew members can operate the robotic arms and monitor other exterior activities.

Credit & Copyright: James Vernacotola

I generally try to avoid posting two APOD pictures back to back, but it’s late (the night before), I’m tired, and this is a spectacular photo that posted over the weekend (so you may not have seen it.) I admit, I’m a sucker for night photography, but the framing of this shot — and oh, the colors!! — makes it downright FANTASTIC. Beautifully done, Mr. Vernacotola.

UPDATE, 2/22: The photographer has set up a special page for this photo, with a large Q&A section and reassurances that prints will be available soon. Join the mailing list to stay informed.

The 32nd shuttle mission to the International Space Station, STS-130, left planet Earth on February 8. Its early morning launch to orbit from Kennedy Space Center’s pad 39A followed the long, graceful, eastward arc seen in this 2 minute time exposure. Well composed, the dramatic picture also shows the arc’s watery reflection from the Intracoastal Waterway Bridge, in Ponte Vedra, Florida, about 115 miles north of the launch site. In the celestial background a waning crescent Moon and stars left their own short trails against the still dark sky. The brightest star trail near the moon was made by red supergiant Antares, alpha star of the constellation Scorpius.

Here they are, the photos from yesterday morning’s launch — the last night launch of the Space Shuttle. It makes me sad.

I mean really, each “last” is just so, so sad.

Maybe it sounds childish, but why does this all have to come to an end??

It’s a thing of beauty. It breathes fire into the night skies. It leaps. It roars.

I hope by the time you see this post, Space Shuttle Endeavour will have carried the STS-130 crew into orbit; at time of writing, it’s about 90 minutes to launch and low clouds are giving a no-go status, which hopefully will clear in the next hour. These pictures are from Saturday, and I love the sunrise photo (top) — granted, a sunset would be more appropriate at this point….

I started to feel bad for all the shuttle-picspam I post around each launch, but you know, there’s only five left including this one, and the Space Shuttle is the iconic spacecraft of my youth and… my life. So I don’t care. I’m posting beautiful shuttle pics. Next year I’ll probably not stop. :P