Discovery is delayed by bad weather

Winds buffet the Kennedy Space Centre

The launch of the 100th space shuttle has been put back once again, this time because of high winds.

Discovery was scheduled to launch last Thursday but the American space agency Nasa delayed take-off because of a problem with a fuel valve and concerns about the safety of bolts linking the orbiter to the external fuel tank.

The technical issues have now been satisfactorily addressed but the shuttle is still waiting to blast off from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US.

Gusty winds of 83 kph (52 mph) made it impossible to load the 1.9 million litres (500,000 gallons) of fuel needed for launch.

"The mission management team will take another look at the weather tomorrow morning and decide whether to proceed," said Nasa spokesman Bruce Buckingham.

The launch is now scheduled for 1940 local time (2340 GMT) on Tuesday. But the forecast is no better and weather officers predict just a 30% chance of lift-off.

By Wednesday, conditions are expected to have improved.

Japanese member

Discovery's seven astronauts are due to add two new segments to the orbiting International Space Station (ISS).

One segment is called the Z-1 Truss. This will support new solar panel "wings" to be delivered on a mission in November.

The Z-1 also houses four large gyroscopes that will be used to stabilise the ISS, conserving on-board fuel supplies.

The second segment is a new docking port for space shuttles. The port currently in use will eventually be filled by the US laboratory unit called Destiny.

The crew includes the first Japanese astronaut to visit the station.

Koichi Wakata will operate the shuttle's 15-metre (50-foot) robotic arm, lifting the two new segments from the orbiter's payload bay and positioning them on the station.

Discovery's mission is the last shuttle flight to the ISS before the station's first permanent crew join the ship.

Astronaut Bill Shepherd and two cosmonauts from Russia are expected to lift off from Kazakstan on 30 October for a four-month tour of the space station.