Space Shuttle Endeavour Launched Today

Space shuttle Endeavour launched at 4:14 a.m. EST today from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, after being delayed by one day because of clouds. Endeavour's mission is to "deliver a third connecting module - the Tranquility node - to the International Space Station and a seven-windowed cupola to be used as a control room for robotics." You can keep track of the space shuttle's progress on this web page of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration).

NASA's web site provides a variety of information about current and past space shuttle missions, including these web pages:

• STS-130 Mission Information: the mission of the crew aboard Endeavour, and profiles of its six crew members.
  
• Space Shuttle Overview: a description of the shuttle's structure
• Space Shuttle Mission Archives: photos and information about U.S. space shuttle missions dating back to 1981.

And although this doesn't come from NASA, I thought I'd draw your attention to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report that we recently included on our blog's weekly CRS list:

• The Future of NASA: Space Policy Issues Facing Congress
  (January 14, 2010)

For additional resources on NASA and space shuttle missions, take a look at our guide to Space and Astronomy.