Space shuttle Discovery has pulled up and docked at the international space station, delivering a full load of gear and science experiments. The link-up occurred as the spacecraft zoomed more than 200 miles above the Atlantic, ending a round-the-world 'chase' of nearly two days.
The astronauts cheered when the hatches swung open, and the two crews greeted each other with hugs and handshakes.
A thruster failure made the rendezvous all the more challenging for shuttle commander Rick Sturckow.
One of Discovery's small thrusters began leaking shortly after Friday's midnight lift-off and was shut down.
None of the little jets was available for the rendezvous and docking, and Mr Sturckow had to use the bigger, more powerful primary thrusters, making for a somewhat bumpier, noisier ride.
Mr Sturckow had trained for this back-up method, but it had never before been attempted for a space station docking. Mission Control congratulated him on "a fantastic job".
Discovery will spend more than a week at the orbiting complex. The astronauts will perform three spacewalks to replace an ammonia tank and perform other outside maintenance, the first being on Tuesday night.
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