The Discovery orbiter is set for launch from the Kennedy Space Centre on a 14-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The shuttle and its crew of seven will deliver the main section of Japan's science lab known as Kibo, or "Hope". Lift-off is timed for 17:02 local time in Florida (21:02 GMT).
As the launch countdown for shuttle Discovery got under way Wednesday, NASA rushed to get a special pump on board so a toilet at the International Space Station can be fixed. A motor fan on the Russian-built toilet stopped working last week. Since then, its liquid-waste gathering has worked sporadically. Fortunately, it has collected solid waste normally.
The crew of Discovery is scheduled to leave Houston at 10 a.m. EDT today and arrive at Kennedy Space Centre at 11:30 a.m., as the space shuttle is prepared for a 5:02 p.m. launch on Saturday. Additionally, launch day weather is predicted to be 80 percent favourable on Saturday. Forecasters have only a slight concern of thunderstorms.
NASA managers have scheduled a news conference at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida for no earlier than 4 p.m. EDT on Monday, May 19, to discuss the status of the next space shuttle launch. The news conference will begin after the conclusion of the Flight Readiness Review, a meeting to assess preparations for shuttle Discovery's STS-124 mission to the International Space Station.
After safely reaching its launch pad at NASA's Kennedy Space Centre, space shuttle Discovery now awaits its next major milestone for the upcoming STS-124 mission. A launch dress rehearsal, known as the terminal countdown demonstration test, is scheduled to take place at Kennedy from May 6 to 9. Discovery arrived at the pad at 4:25 a.m. EDT Saturday on top of a giant crawler-transporter. The crawler-transporter left Kennedy's Vehicle Assembly Building at 11:47 p.m. Friday, travelling less than 1 mph during the 3.4-mile journey. The shuttle was secured on the launch pad at 6:06 a.m. Saturday.
The U.S. space agency has re-scheduling the launch date for the space shuttle Discovery and its STS-124 mission to the International Space Station to 21:01 GMT, May 31st.