Media ask STS-133 Mission Specialist Tim Kopra questions at Launch Pad 39A.

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, media ask STS-133 Mission Specialist Tim Kopra questions at Launch Pad 39A, where space shuttle Discovery is poised for launch next month. The six STS-133 crew members, from left, are Commander Steve Lindsey, Pilot Eric Boe, and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew, Kopra, Michael Barratt, and Nicole Stott. The crew is at Kennedy for the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test (TCDT), which provides each shuttle crew and launch team an opportunity to participate in various simulated activities, including equipment familiarization and emergency training at the launch pad.

Discovery and its crew will deliver the Permanent Multipurpose Module, packed with supplies and critical spare parts, as well as Robonaut 2, the dexterous humanoid astronaut helper, to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for Nov. 1 at 4:40 p.m. For more information on the STS-133 mission, visit www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts133/. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett