KSC-07pd2881

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- STS-120 Commander Pamela Melroy is greeted by Mike Wetmore, director of Launch Vehicle Processing, as she exits the Shuttle Training Aircraft with the crew at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. Melroy will be making her third shuttle flight, the second woman to command a shuttle mission. Next to her is Mission Specialist Stephanie Wilson. Behind them on the steps are Mission Specialists Doug Wheelock and Dan Tani (at top), who will be remaining behind to join the Expedition 16 crew after the mission is complete. At right is Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach. The crew has returned to Kennedy to prepare for launch aboard space shuttle Discovery at 11:38 a.m. EDT on Oct. 23. The mission will be the 23rd shuttle flight to the International Space Station, delivering the Italian-built U.S. Node 2, called Harmony. The 14-day mission includes five spacewalks -- four by shuttle crew members and one by the station’s Expedition 16 crew -- to 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 4:47 a.m. EST on Nov. 6. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett