Photos: Countdown

When the space shuttle Atlantis makes its final launch, set for Friday (July 8), Tulane alumnus Doug Hurley will be in the pilot's seat. The astronaut is a 1988 graduate of the School of Engineering who attended the university on a Navy ROTC scholarship. (Photos from NASA)

In preparation for the upcoming shuttle mission, Hurley prepares to perform training maneuvers aboard one of two shuttle training aircrafts at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

At Launch Pad 39A, the crew of space shuttle Atlantis pauses at the open hatch of the shuttle. They are, from left, Sandy Magnus, mission specialist; Doug Hurley, pilot; Rex Walheim, mission specialist; and Chris Ferguson, commander.

The sun rises on Atlantis standing on its seaside launch pad in Florida. The shuttle's crew will deliver a logistics module with supplies and spare parts to the International Space Station. It will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis and the 135th and final mission of NASA's space shuttle program.