(CNN) -- The space shuttle Endeavour lifted off from Kennedy Space Center early Monday on a two-week mission to the international space station.
The shuttle quickly pierced light cloud cover along the Florida coast in a brilliant launch.
By about 4:30 a.m. on Monday, the shuttle had achieved a stable orbit, according to NASA.
The six-member Endeavour crew is delivering a key module to the space station, and is expected to dock there early on Wednesday.
Cmdr. George Zamka is leading the STS-130 mission. Joining him aboard are pilot Terry Virts, and mission specialists Nicholas Patrick, Robert Behnken, Stephen Robinson and Kathryn Hire, NASA said.
iReport: Share your photos, video of the launch
Video: Behind the shuttle launch
The crew is delivering a third connecting module, an Italian-built Tranquility node and a seven-windowed cupola to be used as a control room for robotics. The mission also will include three spacewalks.
See launch photos from the Orlando Sentinel
It's a busy week for NASA, with the agency also preparing to launch a Solar Dynamics Observatory into orbit aboard an Atlas V rocket on Tuesday.
Only four more shuttle launches are scheduled before the program ends.
Endeavour was originally scheduled to lift off early Sunday, but low cloud ceilings forced a nearly 24-hour delay.
