During Discovery's S-124 mission to the International Space Station (ISS), originally scheduled to launch on April 24, the shuttle and its seven-member crew will deliver the pressurized module and the robotic arm of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory.
NASA said fuel sensor repair work on two previous missions delayed final preparations of Discovery's external fuel tank.
"Also, the shuttle cannot launch to the International Space Station between May 7 and 25 because the angle of the sun with respect to the plane of the station's orbit is too high to generate sufficient solar power for the mission," NASA said in a press release.
However, the postponement of the Discovery's launch will not affect the remainder of the shuttle launch schedule for 2008, the agency said.
STS-124 is the 26th shuttle mission to the ISS.
NASA plans to carry out up to six space shuttle launches in 2008, including a flight to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
