Space shuttle Discovery lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the scheduled time 2:38 p.m. (1838 GMT) on Independence Day to become the second space flight after the Columbia disaster in 2003.

The space shuttle Discovery lifts off from the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the United State, July 4, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

The shuttle, carrying seven crew members, soared into partly cloudy Florida skies in a thunderous blast of smoke and fire. Two minutes after launch, Discovery's solid rocket boosters cleanly separated from the shuttle.

This is the 18th U.S. flight to the International Space Station and the 32nd flight for Space Shuttle Discovery, and also the first manned launch by the United States on the nation's birthday, just like "a nice fireworks display" for America.

During the 12-day mission, the crew will test new equipment and procedures to improve shuttle safety, as well as make crucial repairs to the station. At least two spacewalks are planned.

One crew member Thomas Reiter, the astronaut from the European Space Agency, will remain with Expedition 13 crew on the station for a six-month stay. In Discovery's payload bay, the multi-purpose logistics module Leonardo, built by the Italian Space Agency, will deliver supplies, equipment and tools on its fourth trip to the station.

Two prior launch attempts, on Saturday and Sunday, were postponed due to storm clouds. And some technical problems sprung up before Tuesday's liftoff, including a crack found on external fuel tank and a foam that came off from the crack, but after a series of data analyses, NASA decided to go ahead with sending the shuttle into space.

The space shuttle Discovery lifts off from the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the United State, July 4, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

The seven crew members wave on their way to board the space shuttle Discovery at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the United State, July 4, 2006. (Xinhua Photo)

Editor: Yan