Successfully launched Space Shuttle Discovery

The US Discovery ship was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, the ship's first night launch in the past four years.

Discovery ship was launched at 20 hours 47 local time on December 9 (1:47 international time 10-12), 2 days after being postponed because of bad weather. In the night, many areas in the southeastern United States could clearly see sparks from the ship.

Currently the ship is heading up to the International Space Station (ISS) - where the US Aerospace Agency (NASA) is trying to complete construction before the ship ' retires ' in 2010.

This was Discovery's third launch in six months and was the first night launch since the 2003 shuttle shuttle disaster in 2003.

Going to ISS this time with Discovery ship has 7 astronauts including 5 men and 2 women: commander Mark Polansky, pilot William Oefelein, Robert Curbeam experts, Joan Higginbotham, Nicholas Patrick, Sunita Williams and astronaut Christer Fuglesang is working for the European Space Agency.

On December 19, the ship will return to Earth at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral.

Space shuttle Discovery leaves Kennedy's Space Center at Cape Canaveral
(Photo: AP, TTO)

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