What kind of cloud is that? Not a naturally occurring one. Pictured above is the drifting smoke plume left over from last Friday's launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis . The twisted plume was captured shortly after launch high above NASA's massive Vehicle Assembly Building , the largest single story building in the world. Rockets frequently create picturesque plume s during launch. The Space Shuttle is currently visiting the International Space Station and delivering a new backbone truss segment to the continually developing and occupied spaceport . This trip, officially labeled STS-117 , is the 118th space shuttle flight overall and the 28th for the Atlantis Orbiter.
Media Credits & Attribution
Credit: NASA , Ken Thornsley