Another attempt to launch the mission will be made in 24 hours time.
The seven-strong Discovery crew were strapped in their seats when NASA officials aborted the countdown minutes before the scheduled lift-off.
There was concern that the shuttle could be struck by lightning.
NASA has been conscious of the risk since the Apollo 12 spacecraft was hit by a lightning strike as it headed towards the Moon in 1969. The mission succeeded but electrical systems were disrupted.
The space agency is proceeding cautiously since the loss of the Columbia space shuttle and its crew in a failed launch in 2003.