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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- Space shuttle Atlantis is back on Earth, and the shuttle era is over.
Atlantis and its four astronauts glided through the twilight Thursday and landed in Florida shortly before sunrise.
Related:
Smiles not tears at Mission Control at the end
Applause erupted at NASA's Mission Control in Houston when the last space shuttle landed _ but it wasn't from the two dozen men and one woman working the final flight.Hundreds gathered near the runway to welcome Atlantis home -- and to bid NASA's 30-year space shuttle program goodbye.
Atlantis' successful space station restocking mission closed out the shuttle era.
This was a true homecoming for Atlantis. The next-to-youngest shuttle will remain at Kennedy Space Center and be put on display.
NASA's next stop with astronauts will be an asteroid, then Mars. Private companies will take over trips to the International Space Station.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
