“That was about as last second as you can get,” said spokesman Allard Beutel from Kennedy Space Center.ĭiscovery set off on her final journey from a picture-perfect warm February day at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, thrilling enormous crowds of onlookers, a huge international press corp and dedicated Tweet-up attendees.īut the four month delay was not without consequences, as original STS-133 crew member Tim Kopra was injured in a bike accident, and Steve Bowen was chosen to replace him. The crew of STS-133 finally launched on their historic mission, with reinforced ribs, or stringers, in the tank’s “intertank” section and a leak-free OMS, and - two seconds before the launch window would have closed - a working computer in the Range. After waiting nearly four months following the detection of potentially dangerous cracks in Discovery’s external tank and a leak in the Orbiter Maneuvering System pod, a problem with a computer for the Air Force Range Safety Officer nearly thwarted the long-anticipated launch. The most-traveled orbiter is carrying a crew of six astronauts and one human-like Robonaut, along with a new permanent storeroom and supplies for the International Space Station.

Overcoming a down-to the-last second problem, space shuttle Discovery made history today, launching on its final mission to orbit. STS 133 (Discovery) is currently scheduled to launch from the Kennedy Space Center, Launch Complex 39A, to the International Space Station (ISS) at.

Sts 133