Space Shuttle Atlantis touches down at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. (Photo: NASA TV) Photo Gallery>>>

    LOS ANGELES, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The Space Shuttle Atlantis safely landed at the Edwards Air Force Base north of Los Angeles on Friday after successfully installing new equipment on the International Space Station.

Space shuttle lands safely after completing mission

LOS ANGELES, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The Space Shuttle Atlantis safely landed at the Edwards Air Force Base north of Los Angeles on Friday after successfully installing new equipment on the International Space Station.

The shuttle touched down at 12:49 p.m. local time after being diverted from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida because of bad weather there.

The shuttle was originally scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space Center Thursday, but bad weather prompted NASA to scrub the landing.

Weather conditions turned out to be favorable in the landing area in California despite earlier concerns about the possibility of excessively strong winds in the Mojave Desert. Full story

Astronaut Scott Altman approaches the runway at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., in a Shuttle Training Aircraft to assess landing conditions. (Photo: NASA TV) Photo Gallery>>>

Space shuttle to land at California base

LOS ANGELES, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Because of bad weather at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Space Shuttle Atlantis was diverted to California on Friday to land at the Edwards Air Force Base north of Los Angeles, NASA officials said.

The shuttle was scheduled to touch down at 12:49 p.m. local time. Full story

A camera atop the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., captured this view of the Shuttle Landing Facility on Thursday. (Photo: NASA TV) Photo Gallery>>>

NASA skips Thursday's landing opportunities

WASHINGTON, June 21 (Xinhua) -- NASA managers decided to skip Thursday's two landing opportunities for shuttle Atlantis. Now hopes turn to Friday's opportunities, said NASA TV.

Rain showers and a low cloud ceilings in the vicinity of Kennedy Space Center in Florida forced flight controllers to wave off both opportunities on Thursday. Full story