Discovery, crew of seven back on Earth

Images shows space shuttle Discovery docked with the International Space Station as its passes over Europe on April 16, 2010. Discovery landed in Florida on Tuesday.

Space shuttle Discovery is back on Earth. The shuttle and its seven astronauts landed at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday morning (local time).

Their arrival was delayed by rain that popped up right before daybreak. But the sky cleared and Mission Control was able to bring Discovery home. Rain also thwarted Monday’s tries.

The 15-day, 9.7 million-km journey to the International Space Station concluded with a rare flyover of America’s heartland.

It was Discovery’s next-to-last flight.