Shuttle Discovery Launch Successfully, Finally!

After months of delays, Space Shuttle Discovery finally lifted off on Sunday to send its crew of seven into Orbit and then on to the International Space Station. The Shuttle launched from Cape Canaveral on Sunday at 7:43PM EDT just as the sun was getting ready to set. The clear skies allowed the Shuttle to be seen for several minutes.

The launch was given delay after delay due to an engine issue with the Shuttle. The Shuttle' flow control valve on the main engine was giving NASA issues and they wanted to make sure everything was working properly before launching the Shuttle and seven crew into space.

Discovery's STS-119 14-day mission will deliver the station's fourth and final set of solar arrays, completing the orbiting laboratory's truss, or backbone. The arrays will provide the electricity to fully power science experiments and support the station's expanded crew of six in May. Altogether, the station's 240-foot-long arrays can generate as much as 120 kilowatts of usable electricity -- enough to provide about forty-two 2,800-square-foot homes with power.

Discovery also will carry a replacement distillation assembly for the station's new water recycling system. The unit is part of the Urine Processing Assembly that removes impurities from urine in an early stage of the recycling process. The Water Recovery System was delivered and installed during the STS-126 mission in November, but the unit failed after Endeavour's departure.

Joining Archambault on STS-119 will be Pilot Tony Antonelli and Mission Specialists Joseph Acaba, Richard Arnold, John Phillips, Steve Swanson and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata. Wakata will replace Sandra Magnus aboard the station. She will return home with the Discovery crew after three months in space.

The shuttle is scheduled to dock with the International Space Station on Tuesday.