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27-03-09 Astronauts get shuttle ready to come home Saturday

Their mission almost complete,space shuttle Discovery's astronauts checked out their ship's flight systems Friday to ensure a safe return to NASA's spaceport.Discovery and its crew of seven were due back Saturday afternoon,ending a nearly two-week mission that left the international space station fully powered with a new set of solar wings."Enjoy your last full day in space," Mission Control said in a wake-up message.The shuttle pilots went through their pre-landing checklist,testing the ship's thrusters and other flight systems.They encountered only one thing out of the ordinary,a display that switched to an incorrect number.Mission Control said it seemed to be a timing issue and was looking into it.Discovery left the space station Wednesday;it had to be gone by then to make room for a Russian Soyuz spacecraft that's due to arrive Saturday with a fresh crew(Yahoo.com)