Discovery shuttle launch delayed until Friday

WASHINGTON - The final launch of the space shuttle Discovery has been delayed once again, this time to Friday because of poor weather at the Kennedy Space Centre on Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The launch had been scheduled for Thursday, but will now not take place until 3.04 p.m. (1904 GMT) Friday, the US space agency NASA said.

The launch, originally planned for Monday, has been delayed several times due to technical problems. Under current conditions, it will have to occur by Sunday or this window of opportunity may close, according to NASA.

The oldest vehicle in the operating space shuttle fleet, Discovery entered construction in 1979 and blasted off into space for the first time in 1984.

This mission will deliver the last major US contribution to the International Space Station - an extra room - along with supplies, including a human-like robot, known as Robonaut 2, the first-such robot ever sent to space.