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Atlantis Rising

May 10, 2016

The research vessel Neil Armstrong is by no means the first connection between the exploration of space and the ocean. The nation’s first research vessel, WHOI’s R/V Atlantis, gave its name to one of the space shuttles (as well as the current R/V Atlantis). Just after sunset on February 7, 2001, the shuttle Atlantis lifted off from Florida on a mission to the International Space Station. WHOI researcher Bruce Keafer happened to be in Florida with his family, including his father, who was retired from NASA at the time and able to get everyone access to a prime vantage point from which to watch the launch.(Photo courtesy of Bruce Keafer, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)