May 31, 2008 8:00 pm US/Pacific
Shuttle Loses Debris, NASA Not Worried
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) ―
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Visitors watch as space shuttle Discovery sits on launch pad 39-A at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on May 30, 2008.
Getty Images
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The seven-member crew of the space shuttle Discovery arrive at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., on May 28, 2008.
Matt Stroshane/Getty Images
Space shuttle Discovery and a crew of seven blasted into orbit Saturday, carrying a giant Japanese lab addition to the international space station along with something more mundane - a toilet pump.
Discovery roared into a brilliantly blue sky dotted with a few clouds at 5:02 p.m., right on time.
About five pieces of debris - what appeared to be thin pieces of insulating foam - could be seen falling from the fuel tank during liftoff, but it did not occur during the crucial first two minutes and should be of no concern, said NASA's space operations chief, Bill Gerstenmaier. This was the first tank to have all safety changes prompted by the 2003 Columbia disaster built in from the start.
The shuttle's trip to the space station should take two days. Once there, the crew will unload and install the $1 billion lab and hand-deliver a specially made pump for the outpost's finicky toilet.
The school-bus-size lab, named Kibo, Japanese for "hope," will be the biggest room by far at the space station and will bring the orbiting outpost to three-quarters of completion.
"It's a gorgeous day to launch," NASA's launch director, Mike Leinbach, told the astronauts just before liftoff, wishing them good luck and Godspeed. Commander Mark Kelly said Kibo is the "hope for the space station," then radioed: "Now stand by for the greatest show on Earth!"
Nearly 400 Japanese journalists, space program officials and other guests jammed NASA's launch site.
The Japanese lab is 37 feet long and weighs more than 32,000 pounds, and it fills Discovery's entire payload bay. The first part of the lab flew up in March, and the third and final section will be launched next year. The entire lab cost more than $2 billion.
A large political contingent was also on hand, led by Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who is newly married to Kelly, Discovery's commander. "It was pretty exciting," Giffords said. Although it was a smooth launch, she said she wouldn't relax until the shuttle is back from its two-week mission.
Kelly's brother, Scott, didn't need an invitation to the launch - he's also a space shuttle commander. They're identical twins.
Three spacewalks are planned during Discovery's 14-day flight: to install Kibo, replace an empty nitrogen-gas tank, and try out various cleaning methods on a clogged solar-wing rotating joint. The shuttle crew is made up of six Americans and one Japanese.
One of Discovery's astronauts, Gregory Chamitoff, will move into the space station for a six-month stay. He'll replace Garrett Reisman, who will return to Earth aboard the shuttle.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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