Space shuttle carries Japanese lab into orbit (Reuters)

The space shuttle Discovery lifts off from launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida May 31, 2008. The crew is beginning Mission STS-124 to the International Space Station. (Scott Audette/Reuters) Reuters - Space shuttle Discovery blasted off a seaside launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday to deliver Japan's huge new research laboratory to the International Space Station.