Moon Rises Over Space Shuttle Launch

This story was updated at 2:15 p.m. EDT.

When NASA?s space shuttle rockets into orbit tonight, it will do so under the placid glow of a nearly full moon.

The moon will rise over Discovery?s seaside launch site at NASA?s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at about 7:20 p.m. EDT tonight (2320 GMT), two hours before the shuttle?s planned liftoff at 9:20 p.m. EDT (0120 March 12 GMT).

A NASA photographer caught a preview late Tuesday of the lunar event, showing a bright round moon shining down over the launch-ready Discovery. While the moon was officially full yesterday, it will look almost identical tonight.

"It should be a beautiful launch," NASA weather officer Kathy Winters said Tuesday. "We're going to have that full moon out, so that's going to be really nice too."

Discovery?s night launch will mark NASA?s second nocturnal shuttle space shot in a row. The last mission, by shuttle Endeavour, launched into space on Nov. 14, 2008 in a liftoff also accompanied by a nearly full moon. Tonight, skywatchers along much of the Eastern Seaboard should be able to spot the shuttle as it rockets into the sky.

But Discovery?s full moon setup is mere coincidence. The shuttle was initially slated to launch on Feb. 12, nearly a month ago, just after sunrise. But the mission was delayed several times due to fuel valve concerns that have since been resolved.

Discovery?s planned Wednesday night liftoff will be NASA?s 125th shuttle launch, but only the 32nd to blast off at night. It is Discovery?s 27th shuttle mission.

Commanded by veteran shuttle flyer Lee Archambault, Discovery?s seven-astronaut crew will launch toward the International Space Station carrying the outpost?s final pair of U.S.-built solar wings and the last segment of its backbone-like main truss. The 14-day mission will also ferry Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata to the station, where he will replace NASA astronaut Sandra Magnus as a member of the orbiting lab?s three-person crew. Wakata is Japan?s first long-duration astronaut and will return to Earth later this summer.

Because Discovery is launching at night, it is carrying a camera with a special flash to snap pictures of its attached external tank after jettisoning the 15-story fuel tank once the shuttle is in orbit. The flash photos allow engineers to inspect the tank?s foam-covered insulation as a safety measure.

SPACE.com is providing continuous coverage of STS-119 with reporter Clara Moskowitz at Cape Canaveral and senior editor Tariq Malik in New York. Click here for mission updates and SPACE.com's live NASA TV video feed.

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