Shuttle Discovery Docks With Space Station for Last Time

The Space shuttle Discovery docked with the International Space Station at 2:14 p.m. EST Saturday, STS-133 Commander Steve Lindsey reversed Discovery into pressurized mating adapter #2 on the International Space Station’s Harmony node.

Docked over Australia

The two spacecraft were flying about 220 miles above western Australia at the time they docked.

Discovery was the first space shuttle to dock to a space station when it docked to Russia’s Mir station on mission STS-91 on June 4, 1998. Discovery also was the first shuttle to dock to the International Space Station on STS-96 on May 29, 1999. This was Discovery’s 13th and final docking to the space station.

Discovery crew board Space Ststion 

The shuttle and station crews opened hatches at 4:16 p.m. Discovery’s crew of Lindsey, Pilot Eric Boe, and Mission Specialists Alvin Drew, Steve Bowen, Mike Barratt and Nicole Stott joined Expedition 26 Commander Scott Kelly and Flight Engineers Oleg Skripochka, Alexander Kaleri, Dmitry Kondratyev, Paolo Nespoli, and Cady Coleman