U.S. space shuttle Atlantis lifted off on Monday (Nov 16) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a mission to deliver a stockpile of spare parts for the orbiting International Space Station (ISS).

　　Space shuttle Atlantis lifts off from pad 39-A, Monday, Nov 16, 2009, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Atlantis and its six member crew are heading for an 11-day mission to the international space station. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

According to NASA, Atlantis' mission will focus on storing spare hardware on the exterior of the ISS. In total, NASA said some 27,250 pounds (12,360 kilograms) of spares will be delivered to keep the orbiting outpost in service after the shuttle fleet is retired, including two control moment gyroscopes, used in maneuvering the station. An experiment by students at Texas Southern University in Houston that will study how microbes grow in microgravity is also heading to orbit aboard Atlantis.

　　Space shuttle Atlantis lifts off from launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida Nov 16, 2009. Atlantis lifted off its seaside launch pad on Monday, loaded with spare parts to keep the International Space Station flying after the shuttles are retired next year.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

"We wish you good luck, Godspeed, and we'll see you back here just after Thanksgiving," launch director Mike Leinbach told shuttle commander Charles Hobaugh right before the liftoff.

"We're excited to take this incredible vehicle for a ride and meet up with another incredible vehicle," Hobaugh said.

Following a smooth countdown, with no technical issues and weather that steadily improved throughout the afternoon, the shuttle blasted off on time from Launch Pad 39A at 2:28 p.m. EDT (1928 GMT), NASA TV shows. The five engines boosting Atlantis and its external tank toward orbit shut down as planned about eight and a half minutes into flight.

"A perfect launch, right on time," said a NASA spokesman after the shuttle reached orbit.

Atlantis will reach the space station on Wednesday. As the shuttle blasted off, the station was soaring 220 miles (350 kilometers) above the South Pacific.

Atlantis' 11-day flight will include three spacewalks and the installation of two platforms to the station's truss, or backbone. The platforms will hold spare parts to sustain station operations after the shuttles' retirement. This equipment is large and can only be transported using the unique capability of the shuttle.

Atlantis also will bring back station crew member Nicole Scott, who has been living at the space station since the end of August. This is slated to be the final space shuttle crew rotation flight for the station.

The STS-129 mission is NASA's fifth and last shuttle mission for 2009. There are just five more shuttle launches scheduled before the planned September 2010 retirement of the space shuttle fleet.

Editor: Miranda