IN a highly anticipated grand finale to their mission, astronauts opened the shutters on the International Space Station’s new observation deck yesterday and were humbled by “absolutely spectacular” views of Earth from inside the elaborate atrium of windows.

Astronauts ventured out on the third and final spacewalk of their mission today to unwrap the International Space Station’s new lookout – the best window on the world that orbiting crews have ever had.

Space shuttle Discovery and its seven astronauts safely returned to Earth tonight after some last-minute suspense over which landing site to use.

Astronauts aboard the space shuttle Discovery woke up to their first day in space today, where the first order of business will be to make sure their ship was not damaged during launch.

Nasa will today hold a meeting in Cape Canaveral, Florida, to decide whether to try to launch space shuttle Discovery overnight.