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Music.

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Like a Broadway star ready for the final performance, space shuttle Discovery took center stage

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as it emerged through the Vehicle Assembly Building's towering door.

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The shuttle began its 3.4-mile journey to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center just after sunset,

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departing the mammoth building shortly before 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight time on September 20.

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As it moved down the crawlerway, Discovery was illuminated by

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bright xenon lights during the first part of its trek.

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The spacecraft -- NASA's longest-serving shuttle in the fleet --

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will make its final flight on the STS-133 mission to the International Space Station.

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Gathering to witness one of the final space shuttle rollouts and share the moment of

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space history were several astronauts, as well as Kennedy employees along with their families and friends.

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Stacked with its solid rocket boosters and external fuel tank on the mobile launcher platform,

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the shuttle's slow roll atop a crawler-transporter took about six and a half hours,

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reaching the seaside launch pad just before 2 a.m.

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On this final flight, Discovery will carry the Permanent Multipurpose Module,

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Robonaut 2, and various supplies and equipment bound for the station.

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A crew of six astronauts will conduct the 
11-day mission, which is targeted for launch 
in early November.

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From NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, I'm George Diller.

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