The Space Shuttle Atlantis starts to deploy its braking parachute as it approaches touchdown on the runway at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center.

The Space Shuttle Atlantis starts to deploy its braking parachute as it approaches touchdown on the runway at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base in California. Returning from mission STS-117, Atlantis landed on orbit 219 after 13 days, 20 hours and 12 minutes in space. The landing was diverted to California due to marginal weather at the Kennedy Space Center. Main gear touchdown was at 3:49:38 p.m. EDT on runway 22. Nose gear touchdown was at 3:49:49 p.m. and wheel stop was at 3:50:48 p.m. This was the 51st landing for the Space Shuttle Program at Edwards Air Force Base. The mission to the International Space Station was a success, installing and activating the S3/S4 truss and retracting the P6 arrays. The returning crew of seven includes astronaut Sunita Williams, who was flight engineer on the Expedition 15 crew. She achieved a new milestone, a record-setting flight at 194 days, 18 hours and 58 minutes, the longest single spaceflight ever by a female astronaut or cosmonaut. Photo credit: NASA/Carla Thomas