Shuttle Off To A Discovery

Space shuttle Discovery is scheduled to roll out to Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on Saturday, May 3rd, as preparations for the STS-124 mission move forward. Discovery is targeted to lift off on May 31st on a 13-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The space shuttle vehicle, consisting of the orbiter, external tank and twin solid rocket boosters, was fully assembled on the mobile launcher platform and will be delivered to the pad atop a crawler transporter. The crawler slowly moves the shuttle out to the pad at less than 1 mph during its 3.4-mile journey. The process is expected to take approximately six hours. Video highlights of the rollout will air on NASA TV Video File. The mission will deliver the Kibo laboratory’s large Japanese Pressurized Module, or JPM, and its remote manipulator system to the International Space Station. Three spacewalks will also be conducted during the flight. Discovery will be commanded by Mark Kelly. Ken Ham will be the pilot. The mission specialists are Karen Nyberg, Ron Garan, Mike Fossum, Greg Chamitoff and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide. Chamitoff will remain on the station as a resident crew member, replacing station Flight Engineer Garrett Reisman, who will return home on Discovery.