Space Shuttle Discovery is set to launch tonight at 9:20:10 p.m., and weather conditions appear to be cooperating, as Shuttle weather officer Kathy Winters is estimating a 90 percent chance of "go" weather conditions. There will also be a full moon.
If for some reason Discovery is unable to launch tonight, mission managers have said they can try again up until March 16, though pushing the liftoff that late would mean cutting a few days off the planned 14-day flight.
This mission has been delayed for nearly a month because of concerns over suspect fuel control valves in the shuttle's main engines. During the last Shuttle launch, Endeavour's November 2008 liftoff, a valve on that orbiter cracked, though it did not affect the flight. To be on the safe side, engineers replaced all three valves on Discovery with a new set known to be damage-free. Mission managers said they feel confident the issue poses no threat to the shuttle or its crew.
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