Space shuttle Discovery's seven astronauts arrived at Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility in their T-38 aircraft Sunday at about 2:45 p.m. EDT in preparation of Wednesday's launch.
After arriving, Commander Lee Archambault made a few comments to the media gathered at the runway, "We're excited to be bringing the S6 truss up for the final complement of power to the space station. We're ready to get going, and we'll start the process today."
The official countdown clock for STS-119 will begin counting down from the T-43 hour mark at 7 p.m Sunday evening leading to a planned launch at 9:20 p.m. on March 11.
Commander Lee Archambault will lead Discovery's crew of seven, along with Pilot Tony Antonelli, and Mission Specialists Joseph Acaba, John Phillips, Steve Swanson, Richard Arnold and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata on mission STS-119 to the International Space Station.
The Discovery crew members are set to fly the S6 truss segment and install the final set of power-generating solar arrays to the International Space Station. The S6 truss will complete the backbone of the station and provide one-fourth of the total power needed to support a crew of six.
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