Endeavour's docking ring latches onto to the space station port. Photo: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

Capping a virtually flawless rendezvous, shuttle commander Brent Jett guided Endeavour to a picture-perfect docking with the international space station today as the two spacecraft sailed high above central Asia.

Despite an unusual off-center alignment required for Endeavour's solar array installation mission, the first-time shuttle commander made the tricky docking look easy, bringing the 120-ton space shuttle into contact with the 80-ton station at 2:59:40 p.m.

"Houston, capture confirmed," Jett radioed relieved flight controllers at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

A few minutes later, commands were sent to pull Endeavour's docking ring into its housing, clearing the way for hooks and latches to engage to firmly lock the two spacecraft together.

Cameras aboard Endeavour capture the entire length of the fledgling space station. Photo: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

"Well done today, great job," station commander William Shepherd radioed his shuttle counterpart a few minutes before the station crew called it a day.

"Thanks a lot, it's great to be here," Jett replied.

Said lead flight director William Reeves: "We had an absolutely flawless rendezvous today, we couldn't have asked for anything better. The shuttle is performing superbly, we don't have any anomalies whatsoever that we're working on the orbit."

The crew did, however, run into a bit of trouble opening a hatch leading into the shuttle's docking port. Engineers said they believed the hatch mechanism was working properly and that internal seals were simply sticking together.

Astronaut Carlos Noriega was told to push on the hatch as hard as he could -- to apply "significant force" -- but he was unsuccessful. Then, to the Marine's comic dismay, Navy veteran Joseph Tanner gave it a push and the hatch popped open.

Carlos Noriega struggles to open the space station hatch. Photo: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

The goal of the 101st shuttle mission is to install a $600 million set of solar arrays on the space station that will provide the power needed to begin scientific research next year. The P6 arrays will be attached during a spacewalk Sunday by Tanner and Noriega.

But first, Canadian astronaut Marc Garneau had to use Endeavour's fragile 50-foot-long robot arm to pluck the massive, unpowered P6 truss from the shuttle's cargo bay to keep it from getting too hot or too cold while awaiting installation.

"There is a possibility that we will exceed certain thermal limits -- temperature limits -- on the P6 if we just leave it in the bay," Garneau said in a NASA interview. "Positioning it directly above the bay in this overnight position is a way to keep its temperature within the required range so that we don't damage any of its components."

After attaching the robot arm to a grapple fixture on the side of the P6 truss, Garneau carefully lifted the boxy component out of Endeavour's cargo bay at 5:30 p.m.

The robot arm holds the P6 truss high above the payload bay. Photo: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

Because one of the station's docking ports was positioned directly above the forward part of the bay, Garneau could not simply lift it straight up. Instead, he had to tilt it up and out much like slipping a foot from a shoe, tilting the aft end up and back in a stepwise fashion.

"It is a more difficult maneuver because of the fact that there are obstructions there, and it's also very new in the sense that it's a very large structure that you have to move very slowly," Garneau said before launch.

But he had no problems today and by 6:30 p.m., the P6 truss was safely in the desired overnight park position on the end of Endeavour's robot arm, tilted 30 degrees or so to the long axis of the shuttle.

The P6 arrays will be attached to a truss on the Unity module's upward facing port. Endeavour docked to Unity's downward-facing PMA-3 port and thus approached from directly below in the same fashion shuttle crews once docked with the now abandoned Mir station.

Endeavour's precision approach was visible through the portholes of the International Space Station. Photo: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

"The rendezvous was dead on from the beginning," Reeves said. "We pressed right on through 30 feet to the docking. We had a closure rate of less than 0.12 feet per second at contact within one inch, laterally, of where we wanted to be. The attitude errors were less than one degree in any axis.

"After capture, the vehicles were very stable, the docking system performed beautifully," Reeves said. "It could not have gone any better. So we're now docked, we have no pressure leaks whatsoever in the interface between the shuttle and the station."

Spectacular videotape shot by Shepherd and company showed Endeavour slowly approaching against the blue-and-white backdrop of planet Earth. The shuttle could be seen gracefully rotating 180 degrees to achieve the tail forward orientation required for docking.

It was a triumphant moment for Jett and Shepherd, both Navy veterans who discussed the rendezvous as if it involved two ships meeting on the high seas to transfer fuel and equipment.

"Endeavour's stationkeeping at 30 feet," Jett formally radioed at one point. "Requesting permission to come alongside and dock at PMA-3."

"Endeavour, Alpha. When you're closed up, clear to board PMA-3," Shepherd replied.

"Copy. Closing up Romeo. We're commencing final approach," Brent radioed.

Fittingly, the docking occurred as the U.S. Naval Academy football team was pulling off its own victory, defeating arch-rival Army in a nationally televised game in Baltimore.

"And Endeavour, Houston, just a football update," astronaut Shannon Lucid radioed from mission control. "Navy beat Army 30 to 28."

"All right! This is turning out to be a pretty good day," Jett replied.

"That's for sure. That was an awesome rendezvous, approach and docking."

A shuttle jet firing is visible in this television view from the station during the final approach. Photo: NASA TV/Spaceflight Now

"Yeah, I just hope I saved enough (fuel) in the forward (tanks) for Bloomer to get the fly around."

He was referring to an undocking maneuver that will be carried out by pilot Michael Bloomfield as the shuttle departs next week.

As it turned out, Jett needn't have worried. After checking with flight controllers, Shannon reported "just for your information, you gained 85 pounds in the forward (tanks) this morning during the rendezvous and approach."

"Hey, this is a REALLY great day now," Jett replied.

"I thought that's what you might be thinking."

Endeavour's crew will not get to meet Shepherd, Gidzenko and Krikalev until late next week, after three spacewalks to install and wire up the new P6 truss. That's because air pressure in the shuttle is lower than in the station to help the spacewalkers prepare for work in their 5 psi spacesuits.

Tanner and Noriega did, however, place a new laptop computer and other equipment in the PMA-3 docking port this evening before backing out and resealing hatches between the port and the shuttle. Shepherd's crew plans to retrieve the items early Sunday.