Update: 5:15 p.m. EST
Discovery successfully lifted off at 4:53 p.m, EST
But there was some drama during the final minutes of the countdown,
as the U. S. Air Force Eastern Range, which is responsible for radar tracking of the shuttle,
addressed a problem with their central computer control system display.
Discovery’s astronauts were safely in orbit at 5:02 p.m., EST
“Welcome to space to you and your veteran crew,” NASA’s Mission Control radioed Discover commander Steve Lindsey.
“Good to be here,” Lindsey responded.
Update: 2 p.m. EST
Commander Steve Lindsey is first to board Discovery. Photo Credit/NASA TV
Discovery under sunny skies. Photo Credit/NASA TV
The countdown for the launching of shuttle Discovery’s final mission unfolded smoothly at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at mid-day on Thursday.
Lift off of the long-delayed 11-day assembly and supply mission to the International Space Station was scheduled for 4:50 p.m., EST.
Earlier in the day, forecasters improved the weather outlook, elevating it from 80 percent to 90 percent favorable.
Discovery’s three-hour fueling operation at Launch Pad 39 A was completed shortly after 10 a.m., EST, with no signs of the hydrogen leak that halted the last launch attempt in early November.
The European Space Agency’s Automated Transfer Vehicle Johannes Keppler docked smoothly with the space station’s Russian segment at 10:59 am., EST, removing a potential obstacle to Discovery’s lift off.
Europe's ATV nears space station docking. Photo Credit/NASA TV
“Everything is going extremely well,” said Charlie Blackwell Thompson, who heads NASA’s test director office at Kennedy.
Discovery commander Steve Lindsey, pilot Eric Boe and mission specialists Mike Barratt, Nicole Stott, Al Drew and Steve Bowen were to begin boarding Discovery during the early afternoon.
The flight will be the 39th and final mission for Discovery, which rolled off the assembly line in 1983 and launched for the first time in August 1984.
The flight will mark NASA’s first shuttle mission since May 2010.
Discovery’s 39th and final flight faced prolonger troubleshooting to overcome external fuel tank cracks. The troubleshooting led to a modification to the fuel tank to prevent further damage.
If all goes well, Discovery’s crew will dock to the space station on Saturday at mid afternoon. Discovery carries a station equipment storage module, an external platform for spare parts and five tons of research gear and other supplies.
According to media reports, large crowds of tourists have gathered in Central Florida to witness Discovery’s departure.
Two shuttle flights will follow before the program is retired.
Endeavour’s in late April will equip the station with the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, an external astronomical observatory. NASA hopes to launch Atlantis to the space station between late June and the end of August.