Discovery To launch

[Craig.]

The space shuttle Discovery is set to launch May 15th. Will be good to see the shuttles up and running again. Lets hope for a safe launch.

[chomp_rock]

Looks like I'm gonna have to clear my schedule for that day and try to get tickets to the press area...

[Paz]

 It's about time.

[Ben_M_K]

Sweet! I'll have to be on the lookout!

[raz]

The space shuttle Discovery is set to launch May 15th. Will be good to see the shuttles up and running again. Lets hope for a safe launch.

Not only a safe launch, but also a safe return as well.

[The Ruptured Duck]

Its about friggin' time!

I have been waiting for this for quite a while

[RichieB16]

Its about friggin' time!

They were just taking their time and being cautious, its not like we haven't had astronauts not flying in space since Columbia was lost-we just haven't had any shuttle launches.

[Anti-Societys Snake]

Sweet!!!! Since the columbia incident, this one will be fine, they will do everything possible to make sure it is a perfect flight, to make an impression.

[Gary R.]

There has to be new technologies discovered that could create a much safer shuttle though.  It's high time NASA builds one.  After-all, the shuttle design is now over 30 years old.

[RichieB16]

Thats true, but it is very expensive and the shuttles have been very successiful.

[beaky]

I agree with those who say these ships are not the way to move forward, but I think it's important to keep Shuttle flights going for a while to support the completion of the ISS. And no doubt these missions will yield valuable data for planning the next generation of space shuttles, which will, I hope, be somewhere between STS and Space Ship One.
 NASA really needs a simple,workhorse people-mover and better robotic freighters to really make the most of orbital space, IMHO... they could learn a lot from shops like Scaled, who are redefining space technology without re-inventing the wheel, and the Russians, who have been methodically tweaking their  tried & true, simple, rugged hardware with great success.
 But it's always a thrill to see a Shuttle launch, and as a pilot, I love seeing a spacecraft return on a runway. This mission won't disappoint, I think...

[jordonj]

I read that engineers from the firm that made the O-rings knew that the cold weather would be a problem (regarding the Challenger disaster).  I had to read their report for a technical writing class and they didn't communicate very well as they spoke in "techninese" too much...