Busy mission ahead after smooth launch

By CURTIS KRUEGER, Times Staff Writer
Published October 24, 2007

Space Shuttle Discovery lifts off from launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. The shuttle will deliver the Italian-built Harmony module to the International Space Station. The module will provide attachment points for European and Japanese laboratory modules.
	[Getty Images]

ADVERTISEMENT [AP photo] Astronauts of space shuttle Discovery, from left, commander Pamela Melroy, pilot George Zamka, mission specialists Scott Parazynski, Stephanie Wilson, Douglas Wheelock, European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli of Italy and mission specialist Daniel Tani, pose for a photo after a media briefing during the countdown demonstration test at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral.

CAPE CANAVERAL -- The space shuttle Discovery launched into orbit Tuesday with the light saber used by Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, which debuted 30 years ago.

But instead of battling Darth Vader in a galactic war, astronauts on board this spacecraft will spend the next two weeks in a show of extraterrestrial cooperation -- building the international space station.

"This is a great start for a very challenging mission," NASA associate administrator Bill Gerstenmaier said.

From a viewpoint 3 miles away, Discovery could be seen blasting into the sky on top of two bright jets of flame. A few seconds later, the spacecraft roared through a layer of clouds and created a glowing yellow sphere as it passed through. Discovery reappeared seconds later as it rose above the cloud patch and streaked toward space.

The seven astronauts are headed for a busy two-week mission to attach a soda-can-shaped chamber called Harmony to the space station.

The 23-by-14-foot chamber will link astronauts with two space station laboratories, one European and one Japanese, that will be flown up and attached on later flights. Astronauts will use a robotic arm to fit the chamber in place.

During five space walks on this mission, astronauts will rewire portions of the station, move solar panels and a truss, and work on the Harmony chamber -- "a tremendous series of challenges in front of us," Gerstenmaier said.

Weather, ice and tiny cracks on Discovery's wings all threatened to delay the launch, but NASA managers concluded that none of it should stop the countdown.

Less than an hour before launch, engineers were studying a build-up of ice on a fuel line, which they were afraid would break off during launch and damage Discovery's exterior, similar to the falling foam that doomed the shuttle Columbia in 2003. They concluded the ice was not a significant threat.

NASA managers said their first impression was that falling debris had not damaged the shuttle's exterior, but more extensive reviews are under way, as is normal.

Engineers decided last week to fly Discovery despite tiny cracks on the wings. The decision prompted debate within NASA about safety. Astronauts will use cameras and a laser to inspect the wings in orbit to see if the damage has worsened.

This marks the first time that both the shuttle crew and the current space station crew are being led by female astronauts. Astronaut Pam Melroy became the second woman to command a space shuttle mission.

The light saber was included in Discovery's cargo to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the first movie in the Star Wars series.

[Last modified October 24, 2007, 00:08:36]