STS-115 external tank falls away from the Space Shuttle

Backdropped against a blanket of gray clouds, the STS-115 external tank falls away from the Space Shuttle Atlantis on 9 September 2006. A crew member onboard the shuttle recorded the image with a digital still camera. Mission managers and flight controllers on the ground are studying the handheld pictures along with another group of ET separation photos recorded by automatic cameras in the umbilical well.