When space shuttle Atlantis lifts off later tomorrow on what NASA has planned to be its final flight, helping to launch it will be a rocket booster segment that first flew 25 years ago on the orbiter’s maiden mission.

The aft dome on the left solid rocket booster scheduled to loft Atlantis’ STS-132 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) Friday first launched STS-51J, the orbiter’s first flight to space, on Oct. 3, 1985.

The almost quarter-century reunion between Atlantis and its reusable solid rocket booster’s casing is just one of the historical connections between the orbiter and its launch system. Including STS-132, 18 of Atlantis’ 32 flights are represented by the boosters’ segments, underscoring the legacy that NASA’s fourth-to-fly orbiter will leave after it is retired.

SPACE.com — Shuttle Atlantis to Fly Final Flight With Rocket Segment From Maiden Mission.