NASA wanted Atlantis back as soon as possible to clear the way for the navy to shoot down a dying space satellite.
Officials said it would have been dangerous for the shuttle to descend through any debris field generated by the shoot-down.
The Shuttle Atlantis Is Back On Earth
The Shuttle touched down at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral just after 6:00am on Wednesday after a two week mission on the international space station. Crews installed a European science lab.
