Josh Hendrickson
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the first space shuttle site, LEGO teamed up with NASA to create a new set. The $199.99 Space Ship Discovery will blast off on April 1st and comes with 2,354 pieces—everything you need to build the shuttle and a Hubble Telescope.
LEGO chose the Space Shuttle Discovery to commemorate former NASA Astronaut Kathy Sullivan, the first woman to walk in space. She took part in the mission that launched the Hubble Telescope. You can see a full interview with her at the LEGO site, where she goes over the many details LEGO managed to fit into the set.
You’ll build a LEGO Hubble Telescope as part of the set, and it fits into the payload area of the Space Shuttle. You can store it there or display it separately, thanks to a second stand and plaque. When stowed away, the solar panels fold in so it can fit in the shuttle.
The top of the cockpit area comes off so you can see where the astronauts stayed during launch and access the sleeping quarter. The landing gear can fold out, as does the robotic arm used to deploy the Hubble telescope. The center engine even turns to move the shuttle’s elevator.
You can head to the LEGO site to see a full interview with former NASA Astronaut Kathy Sullivan. The LEGO Space Shuttle Discovery will go on sale for $199.99 on April 1st. LEGO rates the Space Ship Discovery for 18 and up, making it more complicated than many of its space-themed sets.
LEGO Space Ship Discovery
Built to scale, the LEGO Space Ship Discovery comes with 2,354 pieces, two stands, and two plaques. The second stand allows you to display with Hubble Telescope separately with its solar arrays stretched out.
