Gallery: Farewell Discovery: Longest-Lived Shuttle's Greatest Hits
01space-shuttle-discovery-2
The space shuttle *Discovery* returned to Earth for the last time this morning, ending its reign as the world's longest running and most-traveled spaceship. "It just played out the way we wanted it to," said Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana in a press conference after the landing. "We wanted to go out on a high note, and *Discovery* has done that. We couldn't ask for more." When it touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 11:57 EST on March 9, 2011, *Discovery* had flown 39 missions, spent a full 365 days in space, orbited the Earth 5,830 times and traveled more than of 148 million miles. It has carried 246 people into space, more than any other vehicle, including the first woman to ever pilot a spacecraft, the oldest person to fly in space, the first African-American to perform a spacewalk and the first sitting member of Congress to fly in space. The shuttle's 27-year career hit several of the highlights of the space program, including delivering the Hubble Space Telescope to orbit in 1990 (and fixing it twice), carrying a 77-year-old John Glenn back into space in 1998, and leading NASA's return to space after the loss of *Challenger* in 1986 and *Columbia* in 2003. On its final flight, the shuttle linked up with the International Space Station to deliver a new spare room full of supplies and science experiments, plus bring the [first human-like robot into space](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/04/robonaut-rides-the-shuttle/). "We're going to miss *Discovery*," International Space Station commander Scott Kelly told shuttle commander Steve Lindsey on Sunday, before *Discovery*'s crew left the space station. "*Discovery* has been a great ship, and has really supported the International Space Station, more so than, I think, any other space shuttle. And we wish her fair winds and following seas." Now that it's back on the ground, *Discovery* will retire as a museum piece at the Smithsonian. Here we look back at the veteran spacecraft's high points as the shuttle era draws to a close. *Image: NASA*
02space-shuttle-discovery
*Discovery*'s final journey was originally scheduled for November 2010, but a leaky fuel tank postponed the launch until Feb. 24, 2011. The delays echoed *Discovery*'s first launch in 1984 (shown above), which was scrubbed twice before the shuttle finally got off the ground. The first launch attempt, on June 25, 1984, was called off because of a computer failure. The second launch was aborted 6 seconds before liftoff, when an engine failed to start and sparked a fire. *Discovery* finally took off for its first voyage on Aug. 30, 1984. *Image: NASA*
03discoverys-backflip
The crew aboard the International Space Station took a series of photographs of *Discovery* as it made a complete 360-degree backflip in August 2009. *Image: NASA*
04discovery-launch
After the space shuttle *[Challenger](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger)* exploded shortly after liftoff in 1986, *Discovery* led the return to human spaceflight. This image shows *Discovery* taking off from Kennedy Space Center on Sept. 29, 1988, on the STS-26 mission. *Image: NASA*
05discovery-on-its-own
After the space shuttle *[Columbia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Columbia)* was destroyed while returning to Earth in 2003, *Discovery* became the oldest surviving shuttle in the fleet. *Discovery* led the first post-*Columbia* mission (shown in three images above and below), STS-114, in July 2005. [](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/wiredscience/?attachment_id=53812) [](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/wiredscience/?attachment_id=53813) *Images: NASA*
06hubble-clears-cargo-bay
The Hubble Space Telescope left *Discovery*'s cargo bay in April 1990. Unfortunately, an aberration on one of the mirrors kept the telescope from snapping its famous sharp images of the cosmos until a repair mission could fly in 1993. *Discovery* flew two of the following service missions to Hubble, one in 1997 and one in 1999. *Image: NASA*
07astronaut-john-glenn-aboard-discovery
Astronaut John Glenn made history when he became the first American to orbit the Earth in 1962, and again when he flew aboard *Discovery* in 1998 at the age of 77. He is the oldest human ever to fly in space. *Discovery* was also commanded by the first female shuttle pilot, [Eileen Collins](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eileen_Collins), in 1995. [](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/wiredscience/?attachment_id=53811) *Images: NASA*
MSgt Michael A. Kaplan08discovery-piggyback
*Discovery* caught a piggy-back ride on NASA's 747 shuttle carrier aircraft from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana to Kennedy Space Center, Florida in August 2005. Air Force Security Forces personnel set up a security perimeter. At 121 feet long and with 78 foot wingspans, space shuttles are less than half as long and about a third as wide as commercial 747s, which are 250 feet long and have 224 foot wingspans. *Image: Department of Defense/Master Sgt. Michael A. Kaplan, U.S. Air Force.*
09discoverys-july-4-launch
*Discovery* took off from Kennedy Space Center on July 4, 2006, making it the first shuttle ever to launch on Independence Day. *Image: NASA*
10discovery-approaches-iss
*Discovery* approached the International Space Station on Oct. 25, 2007. The [Harmony](http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/node2.html) node, which increased the amount of usable space in the ISS to 18,000 cubic feet, is visible in Discovery's cargo bay. *Image: NASA*
