* Astronomy

About an hour after launch, the Discovery crew began setting up the systems and equipment necessary to live and work in space and to prepare for the 7:35 a.m. Thursday docking with the International Space Station.

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ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli and Node 2 module head for ISS
Paolo Nespoli set off on his way to the International Space Station earlier this evening on board NASAs Space Shuttle Discovery. Inside the Shuttles cargo bay is the Node 2 module, the first European-built module to be permanently attached to the Station.
This evening, Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off from NASAs Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:38 local time (17:38 CEST) and successfully entered low Earth orbit after almost 8 minutes of powered flight. On this STS-120 mission, the third Shuttle flight this year, Discovery carries a crew of seven, including ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli, from Italy.

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Space Shuttle Discovery has begun a 14-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS), after a successful launch from the Kennedy Space Centre.
Despite earlier concerns about poor weather, the shuttle blasted off at 11:38 local time (16:38 BST).
Its seven-strong crew will install the "Harmony" node to the space station.

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