KSC-99pp1420

STS-103 Mission Specialist John M. Grunsfeld (Ph.D.) waves from the rear seat of a T-38 training jet before beginning practice flights. He joins other crew members Commander Curtis L. Brown Jr., Pilot Scott J. Kelly and Mission Specialists Steven L. Smith, C. Michael Foale (Ph.D.), Claude Nicollier of Switzerland and Jean-François Clervoy of France, for pre-launch preparations on mission STS-103 aboard Space Shuttle Discovery. Nicollier and Clervoy are with the European Space Agency. The mission, to service the Hubble Space Telescope, is scheduled for launch Dec. 16 at 9:18 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39B. The mission is expected to last about 9 days and 21 hours. Discovery is expected to land at KSC Sunday, Dec. 26, at 6:56 p.m. EST