Space shuttle takes off on historic flight - Return to Flight - MSNBC.com

Space shuttle takes off on historic flight - Return to Flight - MSNBC.com: "CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Discovery blasted off into orbit Tuesday, opening a new chapter in space history more than two years after the Columbia tragedy grounded NASA's shuttle fleet.
"It's a great day," said deputy shuttle program manager Wayne Hale.
Thousands of onlookers cheered as Discovery rose from its launch pad at 10:39 a.m. ET, its white plume blending in with the cottony clouds over NASA's Kennedy Space Center. "