(03/17/2000) -- In the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), the orbiter Atlantis hangs suspended vertically from an overhead crane. The 122-foot high orbiter is easily accommodated inside the 525-foot-tall, 518-foot-wide VAB. Atlantis will be mated with its external tank and solid rocket boosters before being transported to Launch Pad 39A. Atlantis will fly on mission STS-101 to the International Space Station, where its crew of seven will prepare the Station for the arrival of the next pressurized module, the Russian-built Zvezda. Atlantis is expected to launch no earlier than April 17, 2000