a historic satellite link-up from the Russian space station Mir.

Bill Way, who manages the NASA nerve centre at Cooper's Island, revealed the Endeavour would tune into Bermuda after the station monitored a shuttle launch for the last time on Thursday night.

Bermuda's NASA station, scheduled to close in eight months, is no longer needed because Mission Control in Houston has developed a hi-tech telecommunications signal with a new satellite.

NASA chiefs have already closed 12 other tracking stations around the world.

And Bermuda ventured into the final frontier one last time by providing Houston with the main communications link to the Endeavour for almost seven minutes during Thursday night's launch.

Mr. Way said: "NASA have said this will be the last time we will play a leading role in a shuttle launch.

Shuttle crew prepare to give NASA staff a final farewell going to say a historic goodbye to us from space once the shuttle has docked at Mir.

"NASA asked me to write a summary of everything we've done here in the last 37-and-a-half years.

"That went to the astronauts and I'm led to believe they will set aside time to say `goodbye and thank you' to us.

"They haven't figured out exactly when they are going to do it but Houston will ring us first and then we will all crowd around the monitors to listen to what they say.

"It should be some time next week after the shuttle has docked at Mir.'' The launch -- for the eighth of nine shuttle-Mir dockings -- went off without a hitch and bang on time at 10.47 p.m. Bermuda time.

NASA's team of Bermuda-based space scientists watched the lift-off in front of the huge digital countdown clock in the computer control room at Cooper's Island.

Five-and-a-half minutes into the launch, the station's loudspeakers, delivering messages from Houston, blurted out: "Bermuda has AOS.'' AOS -- or Acquisiton of Signal -- meant Bermuda was now the main communications link between Houston and the shuttle.

The Cooper's Island computers were downloading all on-board data, the air-to-ground voice link and the Endeavour's precise location on its flight path across the Atlantic.

All the information was beamed directly to Mission Control until 12 minutes and 25 seconds into the flight, when a voice on the loudspeaker said: "Bermuda has LOS.'' The announcement of LOS -- or Loss of Signal -- pointed to the exact time when Bermuda was no longer a frontline player in US space missions.

By now, the shuttle was roaring towards speeds of 17,500 mph on its climb to a 160-mile high orbit.

It had disappeared over the horizon on its route across southern Britain and Europe, far out of reach of Bermuda's two main tracking radars.

Afterwards, Mr. Way told The Royal Gazette : "We had a frontline role for six minutes and fifty-five seconds.

"It may not seem like a big deal but really it is and it takes a lot of preparation work.'' Bermuda's NASA base had been handed the signal by the Wallops Island tracking station in Virginia.

Six minutes and fifty-five seconds later, the Cooper's Island experts switched the main feed to the tracking relay satellite as the shuttle did a 180-degree roll to engage the signal.

The Bermuda station had buzzed into a hive of activity as soon as the "Ten, nine, eight'' countdown began.

The huge digital clocks, computers showing electronic world maps and radar signals charting the shuttle's flight path were anxiously monitored by scientists.

But it all returned to normal when the signal was crucially switched to the tracking relay satellite.

The Bermuda station will keep monitoring the shuttle's progression for back-up data during the 14-day mission.

But the Endeavour only comes into view once every 90 minutes -- the time it takes for a complete orbit of the Earth.

During quiet spells before and after last night's launch, Mr. Way spoke to around 30 members of the public who gathered to watch the last lift-off.

Among them was eight-year-old Matthew Johnson, who is blind, but was given a full tour of the hi-tech equipment at the base.

"Just about every piece is spoken for,'' said Mr. Way. "Houston wants some of it and so does Cape Kennedy.

"But our employees are also in demand. They have been offered jobs at other NASA stations and Air Force tracking stations.

He added: "The reason why our people really don't want the station to close down is because they love Bermuda so much. They love their work, too.'' The NASA station has monitored every US space flight since 1961, including the first moon landing, the near-disastrous Apollo 13 mission and the Challenger shuttle disaster.

It is to close on September 30.

The Endeavour Graphic file name: SHUTTI