The Space shuttle Discovery lifts off at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
NASA officials said an object that may have been a 1 1/2-inch piece of thermal tile appeared to break off from the Discovery's belly during liftoff. space shuttle launch debris is seen falling off the shuttle (black spot in left- hand center of picture).
Space shuttle Discovery lifts off from Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center July 26, 2005, at Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The space shuttle Discovery lifts off at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
Space shuttle Discovery lifts off from Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center July 26, 2005, at Cape Canaveral, Fla.
The space shuttle Discovery lifts off from Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
The space shuttle Discovery lifts off from Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
The space shuttle Discovery lifts off July 26, 2005.
A trail of smoke follows space shuttle Discovery as it heads down range following liftoff from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
First lady Laura Bush, left, watches the launch of space shuttle Discovery as she sits with Florida Gov. Jeb Bush at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
Volusia County lifeguard Art Condon gives two thumbs up from his lifeguard tower on Daytona Beach, Fla., as he watches the space shuttle Discovery blast toward space July 26, 2005.
Spectators gather along the Port Canaveral barge canal at sunrise in advance of the scheduled launch of the space shuttle Discovery, July 26, 2005, in Cape Canaveral. Fla.
Tourists cheer at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex at the sight of the space shuttle Discovery lifting off July 26, 2005, at Cape Canaveral, Fla.
Crowds watch as space shuttle Discovery lifts off from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.
Tracy Mann, holding his son Jordan, 5, his daughter Taylor, 8, left, and friend Sarah Clark, 9, all of Orlando, Fla., cheer as the space shuttle Discovery emerges from the clouds during liftoff, July 26, 2005, in Cape Canaveral, Fla.
Space Shuttle Discovery is seen on Launch Pad B at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., early July 26, 2005.
The sun rises behind Launch Pad 39B and Space Shuttle Discovery at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005. Discovery and a crew of seven were set to blast off for the international space station that morning.
STS-114 crew members, led by Commander Eileen Collins, front right, and Pilot James Kelly, front left, leave the Operations and Checkout Building on their way to Launch Pad 39-B July 26, 2005, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Mission Specialists, second row, Wendy Lawrence, third row from left, Charles Camarada, Soichi Noguchi of Japan, and fourth row from left, Andy Thomas, and Stephen Robinson, follow behind.
Commander Eileen M. Collins walks past an armed guard before entering the Astro Van on her way to the Space Shuttle Discovery at the Kennedy Space Center, Fla., July 26, 2005.
NASA employees wave as the Astro Van carrying the Space Shuttle Discovery astronauts passes by on the way to the launch pad for the scheduled launch of Discovery at Cape Canaveral, Fla., July 26, 2005.