Astronauts Set for Moonlight Landing

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — Discovery’s astronauts packed Monday for the shuttle’s first landing in the Florida darkness, after a mission that tested equipment for repair of the Hubble Space Telescope in December and for encounters with Russia’s Mir space station.

The five-man crew spent Monday wrapping up experiments and stowing equipment. One of the last chores was to fly Discovery in a position similar to what Endeavour will fly during the Hubble repair mission. NASA wanted to measure heat and the amount of fuel used.

Discovery was expected to land at the Kennedy Space Center at 2:28 a.m. PDT today, nine days after taking off. An on-schedule landing would mark the first time a shuttle has landed in darkness at Kennedy, though they have done so at Edwards Air Force Base in California.