Atlantis Returns to Earth

The space shuttle Atlantis successfully touched down in Florida today following a 12-day construction mission to the international space station.

Its descent from space began at 5.14am local time (0914 GMT) with a 2min 40sec rocket burn to shave around 205mph from its speed and drop it out of orbit.

The landing path took the six Atlantis astronauts over the Pacific, Mexico and Gulf Coast before the spacecraft landed at Cape Canaveral.

The shuttle's return to Kennedy Space Centre was delayed by a day because of concerns about space debris and poor weather.

The crew spent much of yesterday scanning the shuttle with cameras and sensors, looking for heat shield damage after debris was seen near the shuttle on Tuesday.

However, the investigation found no damage to the shield, which protects the craft from the hot gases that accompany re-entry into the atmosphere.

As the shuttle cuts through the atmosphere, temperatures outside it reach nearly 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit (1,650 C).

During their time in space, the crew performed three arduous spacewalks to unpack and install 115ft solar panels that will generate a quarter of the international space station's power. Two more panels are due to be flown up before the space station is completed by 2010.

After two shuttle flights to test shuttle modifications, Nasa launched Atlantis on September 9 in the first of at least 15 flights to complete the space station. When the station is finished, the shuttle will be retired.