HOUSTON, April 11, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The NASA astronauts who journeyed in orbit aboard the final space shuttle Discovery mission will give a firsthand account of their flight at 6:30 p.m. CDT Thursday, April 14, at Space Center Houston.  

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Family, friends, space enthusiasts, colleagues and the general public are invited to view out-of-this-world images and a video of STS-133's mission highlights.  Following the free program, the astronauts will host an autograph session.  

The STS-133 crew returned to Earth on March 9, completing a 13-day mission to the International Space Station. Commander Steve Lindsey, Pilot Eric Boe and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew, Steve Bowen, Michael Barratt and Nicole Stott delivered a new module and an external stowage platform to the space station as well as equipment and supplies.

During Discovery's almost nine days at the station, Bowen and Drew performed two spacewalks for maintenance work and installation of new components. The crew also carried Robonaut 2, the first human-like robot, to space. The robot has since become a permanent resident of the space station.

This was the 35th shuttle mission to the space station and the final flight of Discovery. Discovery has flown more missions than any other spacecraft. After 39 missions and more than 5,600 trips around the Earth, Discovery has carried satellites such as the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit and sent the Ulysses robotic probe on its way to the sun. It was the first shuttle to rendezvous with the Russian Mir Space Station, and it delivered the Japanese Kibo laboratory to the International Space Station. Discovery spent 365 days in space and has traveled more than 148 million miles.  

A total of 180 people have flown aboard Discovery, including the first female shuttle pilot, Eileen Collins, and the first African-American spacewalker, Bernard Harris. Discovery launched on its first mission Aug. 30, 1984.

For more information or to schedule an interview with an STS-133 crew member, contact Dana Davis, publicist, Astronaut Appearances Office, at 281-244-0933. 

For more information about STS-133, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts133

For more information on NASA, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

SOURCE NASA