Credit: Stephen Clark/Spaceflight Now

The shuttle Endeavour's seven-member crew flew to the Kennedy Space Center today to prepare for launch next week on a space station assembly mission. Commander Scott Kelly said the astronauts agreed with the decision earlier today to delay launch 24 hours, from Tuesday to Wednesday, to get back on schedule after unexpected work to replace a suspect valve in the shuttle's crew cabin pressurization system.

"It's great to be in Florida for launch week," Kelly said at the shuttle runway. "I would like to congratulate all the orbiter teams here at the Kennedy Space Center for the really outstanding effort they gave trying to get Endeavour ready to go for a Tuesday launch. They had some real challenges with the weather, we understand the decision to delay until Wednesday and we agree with it completely."

Joining Kelly on the runway were pilot Charles Hobaugh, Tracy Caldwell, flight engineer Rick Mastracchio, Canadian flier Dave Williams, Al Drew and educator-astronaut Barbara Morgan, Christa McAuliffe's backup in the original Teacher in Space Program.

Engineers plan to begin Endeavour's countdown at 8 p.m. Sunday, setting up a launch attempt at 6:36:36 p.m. Wednesday. The goals of the flight include installation of a new space station solar array truss segment; replacement of a faulty control moment gyroscope; attachment of an external stowage platform; and the delivery of some 5,000 pounds of equipment and supplies.

"As you know there's a strong educational element to this mission," Williams said after arriving in Florida. "This flight is really not so much about teaching in space, but about creating learning opportunities for students here on the ground and there's no better person to do that than our own Barb Morgan."

"Thank you, it's great to be here," Morgan said, smiling broadly in the hot Florida sun. "We thank everybody and I especially thank my colleagues in education all across the country."

Al Drew took the microphone last, saying NASA first formed the STS-118 crew in 2002. Two astronauts - Lisa Nowak and Scott Parazynski - were assigned to other flights after the Feb. 1, 2003, Columbia disaster and Drew was added to the crew earlier this year to replace Clay Anderson, now aboard the international space station.

"We've had a crew first assigned to this mission back in late 2002," Drew said. "We've been putting the training together, the plans together, putting Endeavour together to go do this mission. In the words of the great philosopher-poet Larry the Cable Guy, it's time to get 'er done. Let's go have a fine countdown and a fine mission and we'll see you in a few weeks."

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: CREW ARRIVES AT KENNEDY SPACE CENTER PLAY
VIDEO: COMMENTS FROM EACH OF THE ASTRONAUTS PLAY
SUBSCRIBE NOW