NASA engineers have attached the shuttle Atlantis to its immense external fuel tank and twin rocket boosters, bringing the spacecraft one step closer to a March launch towards the International Space Station (ISS).

Teams of shuttle workers are going over the multitude of electrical and mechanical connections between the 122-foot (37-meter) orbiter and its 15-story external tank, which stand poised in launch position inside NASA's cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida

http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/070209_sts117_shuttleprep.html

Space Shuttle Atlantis hangs suspended in its sling in the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building. Preparations are underway to lift the vehicle up into high bay 1, where it will be lowered onto the mobile launcher platform for mating to the external tank and solid rocket boosters.

The orbiter was transported to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Wednesday. First motion was at 6:19 a.m. EST.

The rollover marks a milestone in the start of the vehicle's journey to Launch Pad 39A, scheduled for Feb. 14. Mission STS-117 will be the first launch at Pad 39A in four years.

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