On September 12, 2009 space shuttle Discovery (STS-128) and its seven-member crew landed at 00:53 UTC (8:53 p.m. EDT Sept. 11) at Edwards Air Force Base in California, capping off a 14-day mission to deliver supplies and research facilities to the International Space Station and its six-person crew.
Mission managers called off Friday afternoon’s landing opportunities at Kennedy Space Center in Florida because of thunderstorms and otherwise unstable weather conditions.
Discovery’s arrival completes a two-week flight for Commander Rick Sturckow, Pilot Kevin Ford, and Mission Specialists Pat Forrester, Jose Hernandez, Danny Olivas and Christer Fuglesang. Friday was the 58th day in space for their crewmate Tim Kopra, who launched on shuttle mission STS-127 in July and spent two months on the International Space Station as an Expedition 20 crew member. STS-128 was the 128th space shuttle flight, the 30th to the station, the 37th for Discovery and the fourth in 2009. Six flights to the station remain after STS-128 before the shuttles retire in 2010. Attachments: |
