The lifting crane begins to lift Atlantis up from the shuttle carrier aircraft or SCA beneath it.

At the mate/demate device at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility, the lifting crane begins to lift Atlantis up from the shuttle carrier aircraft, or SCA, beneath it. Visible on Atlantis is the tail cone that covers and protects the main engines during the ferry flight. Technicians monitor the lifting process on a raised platform to the left. Atlantis arrived at Kennedy Space Center atop the SCA on July 3 after a three-day, cross-country flight due to fuel stops and weather delays. Touchdown was at 8:27 a.m. EDT. Atlantis landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California on June 22 to end mission STS-117. Photo credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller.