Space shuttle Atlantis and its astronauts delivered a sparkling new lab to the international space station, but had to delay installing it by a day because of a crew member’s medical problem.

The shuttle Atlantis blasted off today with Europe’s gift to the international space station, a $2bn (€1.6bn) science lab named Columbus that spent years waiting to set sail.

Nasa today delayed the launch of space shuttle Atlantis until January after a gauge in the fuel tank failed for the second time in four days.