KSC-07pp2992

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- As space shuttle Discovery roars into the sky, the twin columns of fire beneath the solid rocket boosters create clouds of smoke and steam rolling across Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. Liftoff of Discovery was on time at 11:38:19 a.m. EDT. The mission is the 23rd assembly flight to the space station and the 34th flight for Discovery. The STS-120 payload is the Italian-built U.S. Node 2, called Harmony. During the 14-day mission, the crew will install Harmony and move the P6 solar arrays to their permanent position and deploy them. Discovery is expected to complete its mission and return home at 4:50 a.m. EST on Nov. 6. Photo credit: NASA/Rick Wetherington, Tim Powers, Tim Terry