Music

Elton John wakes astronauts on final NASA shuttle trip

Published Thursday, Jul 14 2011, 21:12 BST | By Tom Eames | Add comment

Elton John arrives at the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City ahead of an appearance on 'The Late Show with David Letterman'

Sir Elton John woke up the astronauts on the final NASA space shuttle mission today with a special message.

The Atlantis shuttle started its journey from Kennedy Space Center in Florida last week, with the space shuttle programme to end after 30 years later following their return.

"Good morning, Atlantis, this is Elton John," the legendary singer said in a message. "We wish you much success on your mission and a huge thank you to all the men and women at NASA who worked on the shuttle for the last three decades."

Atlantis commander Christopher Ferguson responded: "Elton John. Music legend. Wow. That is absolutely fantastic."

The crew in the shuttle were then played a recording of Elton John's 'Rocket Man'.

Sir Elton and his partner David Furnish welcomed their first son via surrogacy earlier this year.

The singer recently described himself as a "modern woman" after getting up to date with current technology.

Watch a space-inspired video of Elton John's 'Rocket Man' below: