Space shuttle Discovery safely returned to Earth last night after some last-minute suspense over which landing site to use.

The shuttle with seven astronauts on board, including North-East born Dr Nicholas Patrick, landed at Kennedy Space Centre, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the end of a successful mission to the International Space Station.

Discovery's arrival was announced by its signature twin sonic booms and the spacecraft touched down on a floodlit runway in the early evening after a flight lasting 13 days.

During their mission, the astronauts rewired the space station and delivered US astronaut Sunita Williams to the orbiting outpost for a six-month stay.

"We're just really proud of the Nasa team that put it together," said Discovery commander Mark Polansky.

"We think it's going to be a great holiday."

Robotics expert Dr Patrick, 42, who is originally from Saltburn, east Cleveland, was a member of the shuttle's crew.

Speaking exclusively to The Northern Echo following the launch earlier this month, Dr Patrick's wife, Dr Rosanna Palomino, said her husband's first message from space had been: "What a fantastic ride."

Talking about the take-off, she said: "We were able to go to the launch with our three kids.

"We were about three miles away so we had a pretty good view.

"It was pretty emotional, but it was also very physical - all the rumbling vibrates through your body."

She added: "It is Nicholas' dream come true."

Managers at Nasa decided to land the shuttle in Florida on its second opportunity, about two hours after they had scrubbed Discovery's first chance at Kennedy Space Centre because of expected rain. But the showers and clouds disappeared during the afternoon.

Two other sites had been under consideration - Edwards Air Force Base in California, where strong crosswinds prohibited a landing, and White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico, which had not been used for a shuttle landing since 1982.

Kennedy was Nasa's first choice because it would spare the space agency the cost of transporting the shuttle back to its home in Florida.