Discovery leaves ISS
2005-08-06 15:56
Florida - Discovery's crew on Saturday bid farewell to their space hosts and initiated the two-day return journey of the first space shuttle flight since the 2003 Columbia disaster.
Pilot James Kelly fired up the craft's steering jets, taking Discovery away from the International Space Station (ISS) in what Nasa described as "the first step on the road home to the Kennedy Space Centre".
Earlier, the seven Discovery crew, including a Japanese astronaut, exchanged hugs and handshakes with the Russian and the American who hosted them in space for eight days.
"What we're telling them here is we thank them for being such great hosts," said Discovery Commander Eileen Collins.
"We thank them for being part of such a successful mission," she said. "These are memories we'll have forever," she told the two ISS residents, before Discovery undocked from the orbiting space lab.
Kelly then flew the shuttle around the ISS to photograph the space outpost and check it for any wear and tear.
After the manoeuvre, Discovery headed to the orbital position needed for Monday's re-entry into Earth's atmosphere
The crew had been given the green light for their return after Nasa decided loose fibres on the orbiter's thermal blanket should not compromise the shuttle's safety as it re-enters the atmosphere.
Scheduled to land on Monday
But once it is back, Discovery will be grounded with the rest of the fleet until nagging problems with the shuttle's thermal insulation have been fixed, though Nasa managers still hope they can launch another flight on September 22.
A key goal of Discovery's 13-day mission was to test improvements made to the shuttle since Columbia burst into flames on February 1, 2003.
"We've got every objective accomplished on this mission. We now have data we've never had before," said Michael Griffin, administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Collins agreed.
"We've been happy to finally put the icing on the cake through this mission, we are so happy things have worked out so well, see you next week, see you on the ground," she said.
"It's been a wild ride," she said.
The crew still faces some nerve-racking moments when it starts re-entry into the atmosphere.
"You only get one shot at it," said Paul Hill, lead shuttle flight director.
"De-orbit is not a risk-free activity," he said.
"During de-orbit, I'm sure I'll have a thought or two about Rick Husband and his crew," he said of the seven astronauts who perished aboard Columbia.
The shuttle is scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space Centre, on Florida's Atlantic coast, at 08:47 GMT on Monday.
Nasa could leave the shuttle in orbit an extra two days if the weather turns bad.
Before the descent, officials will check data to confirm Discovery is in good shape. New detectors pinpoint any abnormal temperature rise on re-entry.