NASA has announced that the last space shuttle flight will be next September. It will officially be the end of the U.S. space shuttle era.
Next September, "Discovery" will send a pressurized logistics module to the International Space Station.
The mission will mark the end of the Discovery shuttle era after 27 years of spaceflight.
Chief astronaut Steven Lindsey, a veteran of four shuttle missions, will command an all-veteran six-member crew for the final planned mission.
Their training will begin in October.
The first U.S. space shuttle blasted off in 1982.
Before their retirement, the existing fleet of three shuttles - "Discovery", "Endeavor" and "Atlantis" will make a total six more flights to complete the infrastructure of the International Space Station.
New generation spacecraft named "Orion" and "God of War" are due to replace the space shuttle, aiming to return to the moon by 2020.
But this plan now has to be approved by the Obama administration.
(CCTV.com September 20, 2009）
