NASA'S Shuttle Discovery Heads To Space Station On Its Final Mission

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Feb. 24, 2011

Joshua Buck 
Headquarters, Washington                                    
202-358-1100 
jbuck@xxxxxxxx 

Candrea Thomas 
Kennedy Space Center, Fla. 
321-867-2468 
candrea.k.thomas@xxxxxxxx 



RELEASE: 11-054

NASA'S SHUTTLE DISCOVERY HEADS TO SPACE STATION ON ITS FINAL MISSION

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The final flight of space shuttle Discovery 
lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center at 4:53 p.m. EST Thursday 
to deliver a new module and critical supplies to the International 
Space Station. 

The STS-133 mission is delivering the Permanent Multipurpose Module 
(PMM), a facility created from the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module 
named Leonardo. The module can support microgravity experiments in 
areas such as fluid physics, materials science, biology and 
biotechnology. Inside the PMM is Robonaut 2, a dextrous robot that 
will become a permanent resident of the station. Discovery also is 
carrying critical spare components to the space station and the 
Express Logistics Carrier 4, an external platform that holds large 
equipment. 

"With Discovery's mission, the United States once again reaches for 
new heights, pushes the boundaries of human achievement and 
contributes to our long-term future in space," NASA Administrator 
Charles Bolden said. "Discovery's crew - including the first-ever 
dexterous robot crew member, Robonaut 2 - will continue America's 
leadership in human and robotic spaceflight, and support important 
scientific and technical research aboard the space station." 

STS-133 Commander Steve Lindsey will command the flight. He is joined 
on the mission by Pilot Eric Boe and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew, 
Steve Bowen, Michael Barratt and Nicole Stott. Bowen replaced Tim 
Kopra as mission specialist 2 following a bicycle injury on Jan. 15 
that prohibited Kopra from supporting the launch window. Bowen last 
flew on Atlantis in May 2010 as part of the STS-132 crew. Flying on 
the STS-133 mission will make Bowen the first astronaut ever to fly 
on consecutive missions. 

The shuttle crew is scheduled to dock to the station at 2:16 p.m. on 
Saturday, Feb. 26. The mission's two spacewalks will focus on 
outfitting the station and storing spare components outside the 
complex. 

After completing the 11-day flight, the shuttle's first landing 
opportunity at Kennedy is scheduled for 12:44 p.m. on Monday, March 
7. STS-133 is the 133rd shuttle flight, the 39th flight for Discovery 
and the 35th shuttle mission dedicated to station assembly and 
maintenance. NASA's web coverage of STS-133 includes mission 
information, a press kit, interactive features, news conference 
images, graphics and videos. Mission coverage, including the latest 
NASA Television schedule, is available on the main space shuttle 
website at: 



http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle 


NASA is providing continuous television and Internet coverage of the 
mission. NASA TV features live mission events, daily status news 
conferences and 24-hour commentary. For NASA TV streaming video, 
downlink and schedule information, visit: 



http://www.nasa.gov/ntv 


Daily news conferences with STS-133 mission managers will take place 
at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. To use this service, 
reporters must have valid media credentials issued by a NASA center 
or issued specifically for the STS-133 mission. 

Journalists planning to use the service must contact the Johnson 
newsroom at 281-483-5111 no later than 15 minutes prior to the start 
of a briefing. Newsroom personnel will verify credentials and 
transfer reporters to the phone bridge. Phone bridge capacity is 
limited, so it will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. 


Live updates to the NASA News Twitter feed will be added throughout 
the mission and landing. To access the feed, go to the NASA.gov 
homepage or visit: 



http://www.twitter.com/nasa 


Stott is providing updates to her Twitter account during the mission. 
She can be followed at: 










http://www.twitter.com/Astro_Nicole 


For more information about the space station, visit: 



http://www.nasa.gov/station 

	
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