Retiring the Fleet

Looking 30 years back in a last day-and-a-half flurry of descent and landing:

A Dancin' We Will Go

Who says they don't have fun on the ISS?  Here's a clear example of the ISS crew members taking their shoes off and tearing up the dance floor:

Music brought you to by the following [from: http://www.barynya.com/mp3/index.stm]:

Elina Karokhina and ensemble Barynya "Balalaika Music Album"

Balalaika virtuoso Elina Karokhina & Russian dance and music ensemble Barynya compact disk Balalaika Music Album (2011). Elina Karokhina (balalaika), Leonid Bruk (balalaika-contrabass), Mikhail Smirnov (guitar, vocals). Elina Karokhina is Russia’s top balalaika player and a musician of international renown. Her speed, grace, and fluidity on the instrument must be seen and heard to believe. She began her formal training at the Mussorgsky College of St. Petersburg and continued her training at the Rimskii-Korsakov Conservatory, which included a residency in Germany. She returned to her native St. Petersburg, where she earned her Doctorate of Music/Balalaika...

SS Atlantis ascent/docking recap

For those who missed it, here's a recap of the last U.S. Space Shuttle blastoff and docking to the ISS with some bonus shots recapping the 30-year span of space shuttle missions: