The space shuttle Discovery is finally back in Florida at the Kennedy Space Center, completing its mission to the International Space Station.  Due to poor weather conditions, the shuttle landed in California on Edwards Air Force Base.  You can see Discovery and the 747 that ferried it back to Florida in the photo below.

Discovery, riding atop a 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, landed at the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center at 12:05 p.m. EDT, ending the two-day, 2,500-mile ferry flight from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Image credit: NASA

An image from the mission's first spacewalk. Image Credit: NASA

The space shuttle Discovery will undock from the International Space Station later this afternoon.  In a final ceremony this morning, the hatches between the ISS and Discovery were sealed & preparations  for the shuttle’s return began.  Discovery is expected to land back at the Kennedy Space Center on Thursday at approximately 7:05 p.m., weather permitting.

In this image the Leonardo Multi-Purpose Logistics Module is visible in Discovery's payload bay, as is the shuttle's vertical stabilizer, orbital maneuvering system pods, Orbiter Boom Sensor System and docking mechanism. Image Credit: NASA

Discovery astronaut Danny Olivas and ISS crewmember Nicole Stott will venture outside the International Space Station later today on their mission’s first spacewalk.  The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 5:49 p.m. EDT.  The two astronauts main task will be the removal of an old ammonia coolant tank that cools the systems on the ISS.  The tank is scheduled to be replaced on Thursday.

Discovery liftoffs from Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday night. Image Credit: NASA/Sandra Joseph and Kevin O'Connell

The space shuttle Discovery docked with the International Space Station yesterday evening.  The smaller steering jets began leaking after liftoff on Friday and were shut down.  This meant that shuttle commander Frederick “C.J.” Sturckow was forced to use Discovery’s big maneuvering thrusters to guide Discovery into dock.  But, Sturckow was able to dock Discovery with only a little more noise & bumping than a typical dock.  While the commander had been trained on this docking method, this was his first time performing this type of dock.

Discovery is poised for liftoff at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, FL. Photo credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

After two delays, the space shuttle is set to launch at 11:59pm EDT tonight.  One delay was due to bad weather and the second involved the hydrogen valve.

Discovery is poised for liftoff at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, FL. Photo credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

The space shuttle discovery is set to launch early Tuesday morning at 1:36am EDT.  The shuttle will deliver experiments and equipment to the International Space Station.  The equipment includes a new treadmill named after TV comedian Stephen Colbert.