Flight Day 3 is winding down and Mission Control has bid the astronauts a good night. Just before signing off, CAPCOM Stan Love radioed commander Rick Sturckow with the news that analysts have cleared Discovery's starboard wing heat shield of any focused inspections. That clears the way for Leonardo's hoisting out of the payload bay and mounting to the space station on Flight Day 4. Had the wing needed follow up examinations, the installation of the cargo module would have been postponed a day to accommodate the extra inspections.

Robotics work between the space station and shuttle arms has been underway for the past couple of hours. The station arm was used to remove the shuttle's inspection boom from its cradle in the payload bay and then hand it off to Discovery's arm. The boom had to be moved to ensure good clearance for the Leonardo cargo module's unberthing Monday evening, but couldn't be unstowed prior to docking because of loads concerns.

Astronauts Nicole Stott and Tim Kopra have officially exchanged places between the shuttle and station crews, completing one of the primary objectives of Discovery's mission.

Stott is now a member of the space station's Expedition 20 crew. She will work on the station until the next shuttle mission in November.

Kopra launched to the station in July aboard shuttle Endeavour and will return to Earth with the Discovery astronauts.

The astronauts are getting to work transferring equipment carried up in the middeck of Discovery for the space station.

HATCHES OPEN. The hatchway between Discovery and the space station was opened at 10:33 p.m. EDT, and now the seven shuttle astronauts are being welcomed aboard the outpost by the six-man Expedition 20 resident crew.

The Expedition 20 crew includes commander Gennady Padalka, NASA astronauts Michael Barratt and Tim Kopra, European astronaut Frank De Winne, Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko and Canadian astronaut Robert Thirsk.

Discovery's crew is commander Rick Sturckow, pilot Kevin Ford, mission specialists Pat Forrester, Jose Hernandez, Danny Olivas, Christer Fuglesang and soon-to-be station astronaut Nicole Stott.

Later tonight, Stott and Kopra will exchange positions. Stott will move her things aboard the station and become a member of Expedition 20. Kopra will conclude his month-and-a-half mission as a station flight engineer and join the Discovery crew for return to Earth on September 10.

Shuttle commander Frederick Sturckow, forced by a leaky steering jet to use Discovery's big maneuvering thrusters instead of preferred fine-control vernier engines, deftly guided the spaceplace to a smooth docking with the International Space Station Sunday night to cap a two-day rendezvous.

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The docking ring has been retracted and the hooks and latches have driven shut to firmly connect the shuttle to the space station. A series of leak checks between the docking ports will take the better part of the next two hours.

Discovery's docking mechanism is pulling the two craft together.

Docking occurred 10 minutes ahead of schedule as the spacecraft flew in orbital darkness over the Atlantic Ocean.

CONTACT AND CAPTURE! Space shuttle Discovery has docked to the International Space Station on the 25th anniversary of its first launch into orbit. The shuttle has arrived at the station for delivery of new science hardware and supplies.

The relative motions of the shuttle and station will be allowed to damp out over the next few minutes by the spring-loaded docking system. Later, the hooks and latches will be closed to firmly join the two craft and Discovery's Orbiter Docking System docking ring will be retracted to form a tight seal.

The opening of hatches between the station and shuttle is expected in about two hours. That will be followed by a welcoming ceremony and safety briefing.

About 8 feet to go.

Discovery's thrusters are programmed to fire in a post-contact maneuver to force the two docking ports together. That procedure is being armed.

Less than 20 feet separate the shuttle from the station. Perfect alignment reported from Mission Control.

Discovery is closing at about 0.1 feet per second. Current distance now 26 feet.

The alignment looks good between docking ports on Discovery and the space station. The final approach covering the last 30 feet is beginning.

Inside 42 feet to docking. Commander Rick Sturckow is getting the shuttle's docking port aligned with the station.

About 69 feet separate the shuttle and station.

This will be commander Rick Sturckow's fourth visit to the International Space Station, more than any other astronaut. He served as the pilot on the very first assembly mission back in 1998, then again on a supply-delivery and crew rotation flight in 2001. The Marine later commanded a mission in 2007 that installed the third solar-power truss.

Now about 124 feet from docking with the shuttle closing at about 0.2 feet per second.

Discovery is about 170 feet from the station.

The two spacecraft are passing into an orbital sunset while approaching the west coast of South America. Docking is scheduled to occur at the next sunrise.

Following shuttle flight director Tony Ceccacci's poll of his team in Mission Control, the astronauts have been given a "go" for docking.

The shuttle is less than 300 feet in front of the station complex now.

The docking mechanism in Discovery's payload bay is being powered up by the astronauts.

The shuttle has reached a point directly in front of the station along the imaginary line called the velocity vector, or +V bar.

Discovery is marking the arc from the point beneath the station to a point in front of the complex to align with the docking port on the Harmony module. Docking is about 45 minutes away.

The pitch maneuver has been completed. Discovery is back in the orientation where it started, with the payload bay looking up at the station.

Mission Control says Discovery's commander is flying a textbook rendezvous pitch maneuver.

The main engine nozzles of Discovery are facing the station now as the shuttle points its tail upward.

Now flying above New Zealand.

This 360-degree, nose-first pirouette by Discovery gives the station crew about 100 seconds of quality photography time to snap detailed pictures of the orbiter's black tiles in the search for any launch impact damage.

The formal photo-taking period has started for the Expedition 21 crew, now that the shuttle has rotated its underside in view of the station complex.

Discovery is nose-up facing the station.

The rendezvous pitch maneuver -- the 360-degree flip -- is beginning. The shuttle is the under the control of commander Rick Sturckow, who is flying the ship from the aft flight deck.

As the shuttle's underside rotates into view, the station's crew will photograph Discovery's belly with handheld digital cameras equipped with 400- and 800-millimeter lenses as part of post-launch inspections of the heat shield.

The 800mm images should provide one-inch resolution for examination of landing gear door and external tank umbilical door seals. The 400mm will yield three-inch resolution.

After completing the RPM maneuver, Discovery will fly directly ahead of the space station with the shuttle's nose facing deep space and its cargo bay pointed at the lab complex. Then Sturckow will guide the spacecraft to a docking with a pressurized mating adapter attached to the Harmony connecting module.

Under the manual control of commander Rick Sturckow, shuttle Discovery is closing toward the station at 0.4 feet per second.

The spacecraft are formation-flying 690 feet apart over northern Australia.

Range now 760 feet.

Discovery astronaut Pat Forrester says the RPM backflip will start in 10 minutes.

All of Discovery's upward-firing thrusters have been inhibited to protect the space station from any pluming.

Some 980 feet apart now.

Station commander commander Gennady Padalka and flight engineer Michael Barratt are reported ready for their job to photograph Discovery's heat shield during the backflip.

The distance between the two craft is just 1,200 feet.

Discovery is less than 2,000 feet beneath the station.

Another of the mid-course correction burns has been completed by the shuttle to fine-tune its path to the station.

Discovery is some 4,000 feet away and closing the gap toward the station at about six feet per second. Docking remains scheduled for 9:04 p.m. EDT.

Mission Control has given the shuttle crew a "go" for the backflip maneuver. The 360-degree flip should start in about 25 minutes.

The shuttle crew has performed one of the available mid-course correction burns to tweak the flight path toward the International Space Station.

The space station has been maneuvered to the correct orientation for docking.

The International Space Station flight control team in Houston has given a "go" for Discovery's continued approach. The shuttle is about two miles away now.

Communication loops to connect the crews aboard the shuttle and station have been established. "Great to hear your voices, can't wait to see you," Expedition 21 flight engineer Michael Barratt just radioed the Discovery astronauts.

Distance between the shuttle and the space station is 32,000 feet, closing at 12 mph.

The shuttle is about 8 statute miles below and behind the space station.

The rotary joints for the giant solar wings on the International Space Station have been locked in the proper position for docking.

The shuttle has performed the Terminal Initiation burn using the left-hand Orbital Maneuvering System engine. The 11-second firing changed the shuttle's velocity by 9 feet per second.

This puts the shuttle on a trajectory to directly intercept the orbiting station over the next orbit and a half. This burn is the latest in a series of maneuvers performed by Discovery during its two days of chasing the station since launch Friday night.

Docking is anticipated a little after 9 p.m. EDT.

The shuttle Discovery's external tank appears to have performed well during the ship's launch overnight Friday. While engineers will not complete a detailed analysis for several more days, no major problems or foam loss have been seen so far in NASA's initial looks at ascent imagery and other data.

Read our full story.

"Go for TI." CAPCOM Chris Ferguson has radioed approval to Discovery's crew for the Terminal Initiation burn that's scheduled to occur at 6:25 p.m. EDT.

Distance between the two spacecraft is now 25 statute miles.

The International Space Station flight control team in Houston has given a "go" for the upcoming Terminal Initiation burn.

Discovery's onboard computers have been updated with the latest navigational information.

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Discovery is about 45 statute miles away from the International Space Station, still on track for docking around 9 p.m. EDT tonight.

Another burn by the Orbital Maneuvering System engines has occurred to refine Discovery's trajectory. This was a 44-second firing to change the shuttle's velocity by 70 feet per second.

"Very clean ascent, very clean vehicle," Mission Management Team chairman LeRoy Cain says. Analysis of yesterday's heat shield inspection data is progressing well and no immediate concerns have been noted. Also, post-separation photography of external tank shows no significant foam loss from the ice-frost ramps as seen on the previous two launches.

The height adjust burn has resulted in Discovery's orbit being increased to 218 x 190 statute miles.

Additional coverage for subscribers:
VIDEO: NARRATED PREVIEW OF RENDEZVOUS AND DOCKING PLAY
VIDEO: THE MOON SINKS BELOW TAIL OF DISCOVERY PLAY
VIDEO: FLIGHT DAY 2 HIGHLIGHTS MOVIE PLAY
VIDEO: ASTRONAUTS' HOME MOVIES: DAY 2 PLAY
VIDEO: ASTRONAUTS' HOME MOVIES: DAY 1 PLAY
MORE: STS-128 VIDEO COVERAGE
MORE: HIGH DEFINITION VIDEO COVERAGE
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An orbit raising burn by Discovery's twin maneuvering engines has been completed successfully. This 67-second firing changed the shuttle's velocity by 105 feet per second and boosted Discovery to the space station's altitude for docking later tonight.

The crew is getting into the official rendezvous timeline. The data processing systems are being configured, the inertial measurement units are being aligned and the Group B equipment will be powered up in support of today's activities.

The shuttle Discovery, marking the 25th anniversary of its maiden launch in 1984, closed in on the International Space Station today.

Read our full story.

Discovery's astronauts were awakened to begin docking day with the song "Made to Love" by TobyMac played for soon-to-be station resident Nicole Stott.

Rendezvous operations will begin in about two hours. The Terminal Initiation burn is scheduled for 6:25 p.m. and the 360-degree backflip maneuver in expected at 8:02 p.m. EDT. Discovery should link up with the space station around 9:04 p.m. EDT.

The latest version of the NASA Television schedule (Rev. F) can be downloaded here.

Read our earlier status center coverage.