Atlantis, designation OV-104, was built by Rockwell International in Southern California. Atlantis was delivered to the John F. Kennedy Space Center in April 1985, and is the fourth-to-last shuttle ever built. The orbiter was named after the primary research vessel for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, in Massachusetts. Her maiden flight launched October 3, 1985, and landed four days later at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

While Atlantis ultimately flew 33 flights, covering roughly 125 million miles, there are a few standout missions.

In June of 1995, Altantis was the first space shuttle to dock to the space station Mir. That same flight was the 100th flight of the space shuttle program. Overall, Atlantis flew seven missions to Mir.

In May of 2009, Atlantis carried a crew of seven astronauts to perform the fifth of five Hubble servicing missions.

Atlantis also participated in a number of International Space Station flights, delivering the American laboratory module Destiny, the Quest airlock, and sections of the truss that form the station's spine.

Atlantis launched on her final mission on July 8, 2011 with a crew of four astronauts.