Well, the stripping has started for the Space Shuttle Atlantis. The shuttle will be stripped of it's interior to make it lighter for it's public display at The Kennedy Space Center. On July 8, the Space Shuttle flew it's final mission which also concluded NASA's 30-year program. At that time, I posted a video of the Space Shuttles' illustrious career. Feel free to check it out.
The lovely folks at collectSPACE were were able to take final images of the Space Shuttle's flight deck, airlock, bay, and a few with the engines out and wheels down.
According to
collectSPACE, it is now being prepared for its public display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. Its insides being pulled out to ensure it is safe for exhibit, as well as significantly lighten it for its planned steep-angled display, Atlantis is scheduled to be powered down this week for the final time.
collectSPACE had the rare opportunity recently to tour Atlantis to photograph its preparation and capture its glass cockpit powered and lit for one of its last times.
The following photo gallery starts on Atlantis' flight deck, and then proceeds to its now mostly empty middeck, out into and above the 60-foot payload bay, and then around and under the winged spacecraft.
These photographs were taken inside Orbiter Processing Facility-2 (OPF-2) at the Kennedy Space Center, where access platforms envelop Atlantis.
Make sure to check out
collectSPACE's website to see the entire gallery.
