In space: Discovery docks

December 11, 2006

The shuttle blasted off Saturday on NASA's first night-time launch since the 2003 Columbia accident. Managers had suspended night launches to ensure its cameras would have good visibility to detect any debris-shedding problems with the shuttle's fuel tank, which triggered Columbia's demise. After an initial assessment of images taken by ground and shuttle-based cameras and of radar that tracked the ship's climb to orbit, NASA was confident the shuttle reached orbit without any Columbia-like damage. The crew plans to stay on the Space Station for one week before its scheduled return to earth on December 21.