KSC01pp0449

In the White Room, Launch Pad 39B, STS-102 Mission Specialist Yury Usachev gets warm greetings from one of the suit technicians helping with final preparations before entering Space Shuttle Discovery. STS-102 is Russian cosmonaut Usachev’s second Shuttle flight. He is also part of the Expedition Two crew flying on the mission to replace the Expedition One crew on the Station. Discovery is carrying the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo on the eighth construction flight to the International Space Station. The primary delivery system used to resupply and return Station cargo requiring a pressurized environment, Leonardo will deliver up to 10 tons of laboratory racks filled with equipment, experiments and supplies for outfitting the newly installed U.S. Laboratory Destiny. Discovery is set to launch March 8 at 6:42 a.m. EST. The 12-day mission is expected to end with a landing at KSC on March 20