Following bad weather on Friday, shuttle Discovery had to make a detour and land in California, as opposed to its original planned landing at the Florida base.

Shuttle commander Frederick C.J. Sturckow and pilot Kevin Ford fired the shuttle's twin braking rockets at 4:47 p.m. PDT to drop the ship out of orbit for an hour-long descent to Edwards Air Force Base.

The astronauts had hoped to land at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, but showers and thunderstorms blocked two efforts on Thursday and two more Friday. With an equally poor forecast for Saturday, the entry flight director, Richard Jones, diverted the Discovery to Edwards.

Houston, Discovery, wheels stopped, Sturckow radioed a few moments later as Discovery rolled to a halt, according to Cnet.

Copy, wheels stopped, replied astronaut Eric Boe in mission control at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Welcome home, Discovery. Congratulations on an extremely successful mission, stepping up science to a new level on the International Space Station.

Mission duration was 13 days 20 hours 53 minutes and 45 seconds for a voyage spanning 5.7 million miles and 219 complete orbits since blastoff from launch complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center on Aug. 28.

Video: Discovery Commander Discusses Successful Mission

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