Scan of an issue of Weekly Reader from 1981, courtesy John Ulaszek.

A slice of nostalgia for your Sunday afternoon: friend of DCist John Ulaszek sent Look Up this great copy of an old Weekly Reader magazine he dug up a couple weeks ago. The cover features the upcoming launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia on Mission STS-2 — the second launch in the brand new space shuttle program and also the second launch for Columbia, with a crew of just two. As often happens, the launch was delayed twice and eventually went up on November 12, 1981, where the crew tested new capabilities, including the Remote Manipulator System, or as most of us call it, the CanadArm. Still working out the kinks, STS-2 was cut short when a fuel cell failed, and landed a little over two days after lift-off; this brings to mind the many NASA officials and supporters who’ve been saying over the past year that we’re cutting the shuttle program right when we started getting really good at it.

Set your clocks for 6:21 a.m. tomorrow, when STS-131 — the third fourth to last shuttle mission — lifts off from Cape Canaveral. Space Shuttle Discovery and its crew of seven will match a record number of people in space at one time, 13 (we’ve done it twice before), and a record number of women in space at once, four. Two Three astronauts (including Soichi Noguchi, whose photography we’ve been enjoying) were aboard the International Space Station as of last week, with three more joining them very early this morning when the Russian Soyuz docked with it. Discovery’s launch tomorrow is your fourth to last chance to see the space shuttle in action, followed by Atlantis on May 14, Endeavour on July 29, and one more ride for Discovery on September 26. Plans for a fifth mission are being discussed, but nothing has been planned.

>> Last week we told you about Venus and Mercury. Technically, they were closest in the sky last night, but should still be just about as close tonight. So look west just after sunset (7:30 to 8 p.m. is best) and you’ll see the very bright Venus and the dimmer but very clear Mercury dance together to the horizon.