CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—Shuttle Endeavour and a crew of seven blasted into orbit today on what was to be the longest space station mission ever—a 16-day voyage to build a gangly Canadian robot and add a new room that will serve as a closet for a future lab.
The space shuttle roared from its seaside pad at 2:28 a.m. (EDT), lighting up the sky for kilometres around as it took off.
“It’s a spectacular night launch,” said federal Industry minister Jim Prentice, who attended the launch at the Kennedy Space Centre.