Endeavour launches with particle physics payload

Running two weeks late because of an electrical glitch, the repaired space shuttle Endeavour finally blasted off and rocketed into orbit for the last time on Monday.

The space shuttle Endeavour launched on Monday on its final mission, carrying a $2bn particle physics experiment to the International Space Station. Photo credit: Nasa

Carrying a $2bn (£1.2bn) particle physics experiment, critical supplies and spare parts bound for the International Space Station, Endeavour's three main engines flashed to life and throttled up to full power while computers monitored their performance 50 times per second. Six-and-a-half seconds later, at 8:56:28am EDT (GMT-4), Endeavour's twin solid-fuel boosters ignited with a rush of exhaust, instantly pushing the spacecraft away from pad 39A at speeds of up to 100mph.

Once in orbit, Endeavour will deploy its payload, the 7.5-ton Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS). Using a massive magnet to bend the trajectories of high-energy cosmic rays — charged particles from supernovas, neutron stars, black holes and other cosmic enigmas — scientists will look for evidence of antimatter and as-yet-undetected dark matter, believed to make up a quarter of the mass of the universe.

For more on this ZDNet UK-selected story, see Shuttle Endeavour rockets into orbit on its final flight on CNET News.