Florida ? The space shuttle Atlantis glided to a safe landing at the Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday, even as crews were busy on the launchpad a few miles away preparing for the next of about a dozen flights scheduled for this year.

Preceded by the famed sound of twin sonic booms, the gleaming shuttle sloped through chilly blue skies punctuated with white, puffy clouds, bringing seven crew members home from their construction mission to the international space station. Next is the March 11 launch of the Endeavour shuttle that will transport a Japanese logistics module to the station.

The Atlantis crew blasted off Feb. 7 carrying the European Space Agency’s Columbus Laboratory, a 23-foot-long module for science research.