FACTBOX-Woman heads crew on space shuttle Discovery

Mission Commander Pamela Melroy is suited up in crew quarters with other crew members of space shuttle Discovery before leaving for the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida October 23, 2007. Discovery is set for a mission to the International Space Station.

(Reuters) - For only the second time in NASA's history, a woman is taking the helm of a space shuttle. Retired Air Force Col. Pamela Melroy heads a five-man, two-woman crew on a construction mission to the International Space Station.

Here's a look at the crew:

*Pamela Melroy, 46, from Palo Alto, California, is the commander and is making her third flight. She is married, with no children.

*George Zamka, 45, from Jersey City, New Jersey, is the pilot and on his first flight. He is married and has two children.

*Scott Parazynski, 46, from Little Rock, Arkansas, a medical doctor and the lead spacewalker, is making his fifth flight. He is married and has two children.

*Stephanie Wilson, 41, from Boston, is the flight engineer and on her second flight. She is not married.

*Douglas Wheelock, 47, from Binghamton, New York, is a mission specialist and on his first flight. He is not married.

*Paolo Nespoli, 50, from Milan, Italy, is a mission specialist with the European Space Agency and on his first flight. He is not married.

*Daniel Tani, 48, from Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, is a space station flight engineer and on his second flight. He is married and has two children.