Lift-off of Space Shuttle Discovery 26 July

The eyes of the world are on Space Shuttle Discovery as it lifts off at 16:39 CEST (10:39 EDT) from Launch Pad 39B on the historic Return to Flight mission STS-114. It is the 114th Space Shuttle flight and the 31st for Discovery. The 12-day mission is expected to end with touchdown at the Shuttle Landing Facility on 7 August. On this mission to the International Space Station the crew will perform inspections on-orbit for the first time of all of the Reinforced Carbon-Carbon (RCC) panels on the leading edge of the wings and the Thermal Protection System tiles using the new Canadian-built Orbiter Boom Sensor System and the data from 176 impact and temperature sensors.