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Space Shuttle Discovery lifts off of launch pad 39-a on mission STS-119 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The shuttle is headed to the International Space Station with a crew of seven astronauts after it's lift-off was postponed on March 11 due to a leak discovered when fueling the shuttle's orange external fuel tank. (AFP)
Space shuttle Discovery and its crew of seven have rocketed into orbit en route to a space station construction mission cut short by launch delays.
A hydrogen leak prevented Discovery from lifting off on Wednesday and, before that, hydrogen valves kept the shuttle grounded for weeks in February. Launch pad repairs took care of the leak, and the astronauts were able to board their spaceship and lift off.
Commander Lee Archambault and his crew, which includes two former schoolteachers, should reach the international space station on Tuesday. There also is one Japanese astronaut, Koichi Wakata, who will move into the space station for at least three months.
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