Shuttle Discovery launches from Florida

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., Dec 10 (Reuters) NASA has launched the shuttle Discovery in a spectacular nighttime liftoff from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Discovery's seven-member crew took off on a 12-day mission last night to rewire the International Space Station. It was the first nighttime launch for the shuttle since before the Columbia disaster in 2003.

REUTERS YA BST0812