Space shuttle was damaged during blast-off - NASA

NASA confirmed this afternoon that the space shuttle Discovery was damaged as it blasted off from Earth yesterday.

Two pieces of debris were seen to detach from the shuttle after take-off - one of these is believed to be a tile from the shuttle's heat shield.

Two years ago, the space craft Columbia disintegrated upon its re-entry to Earth.

It too had lost a piece of heat shielding tile.

Discovery's astronauts are currently examining the damage and NASA says they have the equipment to repair it if necessary.