The US shuttle Discovery made a textbook docking late Sunday with the International Space Station where a total of 13 astronauts begin nine days together improving and supplying the orbiting outpost.

US space agency NASA confirmed the docking procedure, which allows the seven-member Discovery crew to open a hatch and climb into the ISS to join their six fellow astronauts there, occured at 2354 GMT, about ten minutes ahead of schedule.

Commander Rick Sturckow guided the shuttle to a "smooth-as-silk" mating of the two vessels some 225 miles (362 kilometers) above the Atlantic ocean, said a commentator on NASA TV.

"Both vehicles at free drift, all thrusts disabled," he added.

The astronauts then began some 90 minutes of checks to complete on either side of the docking interface before opening the hatches.

As the shuttle sped toward the ISS, the astronauts conducted a routine inspection of Discovery's heat shield by maneuvering a sensor on a robotic arm to look for possible damage.

Then a more comprehensive inspection was performed ahead of the docking with the ISS, with Sturckow guiding Discovery into a slow-motion backflip that allowed the station's crew to snap hundreds of digital photographs of the heat shield from some 600 feet (183 meters) away to look for any damage that may have occurred during liftoff.

The inspections have been taking place on every shuttle mission since heat shield damage caused Columbia to explode as it returned to Earth in 2003, killing its seven astronauts.

Discovery's seven astronauts -- including one Swede -- are delivering equipment for a new bedroom, a treadmill, a freezer, food and other supplies.

They will also be dropping off the newest member of the ISS team -- US astronaut Nicole Stott, who will be taking over from engineer and fellow American Tim Kopra.

Kopra has been aboard the orbiting laboratory since July and is returning to Earth with the shuttle.

Discovery began its latest journey with the failure of one of two small steering jets that flank the orbiter nose after a leak, but NASA said the loss would have no impact on the shuttle's flight or return to Earth.

The crew will close a manifold to isolate both jets and disable them from use for the remainder of the mission, said the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Discovery blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, late Friday after its launch was delayed three times by bad weather and a valve problem.

The crew will be delivering to the station 6.8 tonnes of cargo transported in a pressurized module called Leonardo that was built by the Italian space agency.

Two astronauts from the team are scheduled to conduct three spacewalks of six-and-a-half hours each during the 13-day mission, the fourth of five planned for the shuttle program this year. The last is scheduled for November.

One of the key goals of the spacewalks is the replacement of an old liquid ammonia tank, which will be substituted with a new 800-kilogram (1,760-pound) replacement. The substance is used as a coolant.

The astronauts will also be retrieving experiment equipment from the exterior of the ISS and returning it to Earth for processing.

The freezer being delivered will store samples of blood, urine and other materials that will eventually be taken back to Earth for study on the effects of zero-gravity.

The COLBERT treadmill, named after popular US comedy talkshow host Stephen Colbert, will be the second aboard the ISS. Exercise is key for astronauts spending long periods of time in space, where zero-gravity can result in muscle atrophy.

The mission will be the 128th for the space shuttle program, and the 30th mission to the ISS.

Once the Discovery mission is complete, just six more shuttle flights remain before NASA's three shuttles are retired in September 2010.

earlier related report
US shuttle Discovery closes in on space station
The US shuttle Discovery on Sunday was closing in on the International Space Station to deliver food, a lab freezer and a treadmill to the orbiting outpost.

As the shuttle sped toward the ISS, the astronauts conducted a routine inspection of Discovery's heat shield by maneuvering a sensor on a robotic arm to look for possible damage.

Pilot Kevin Ford and mission specialists Patrick Forrester and Jose Hernandez took turns at the controls of the sensor system to inspect the shuttle's nose cap and its right and left wings, NASA said.

But a more comprehensive inspection will be performed one hour ahead of the 9:04 pm (0104 GMT Monday) docking with the ISS, during a shuttle backflip that allows the station's crew to photograph the heat shield from some 600 feet (183 meters) to look for any damage that may have occurred during liftoff.

The inspections have been taking place in every shuttle mission since heat shield damage caused Columbia to explode as it returned to Earth in 2003, killing its seven astronauts.

The shuttle has begun its latest journey with the failure of one of two small steering jets that flank the orbiter nose after a leak, but NASA said the loss would have no impact on Discovery's flight or return to Earth.

The astronauts will close a manifold to isolate both jets and disable them from use for the remainder of the mission, said the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Discovery's seven astronauts -- including one Swede -- are delivering equipment for a new bedroom, a treadmill, a freezer, food and other supplies.

They will also be dropping off the newest member of the ISS team -- US astronaut Nicole Stott, who will be taking over from engineer and fellow American Tim Kopra.

Kopra has been aboard the orbiting laboratory since July and is returning to Earth with Discovery.

Discovery blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, late Friday after its launch was delayed three times by bad weather and problems with a valve.

The crew will be delivering to the station 6.8 tonnes of cargo transported in a pressurized module called Leonardo that was built by the Italian space agency.

Two astronauts from the team are scheduled to conduct three spacewalks of six-and-a-half hours each during the 13-day mission, the fourth of five planned for the shuttle program this year. The last is scheduled for November.

One of the key goals of the spacewalks is the replacement of an old liquid ammonia tank, which will be substituted with a new 800-kilogram (1,760-pound) replacement. The substance is used as a coolant.

The astronauts will also be retrieving experiment equipment from the exterior of the ISS and returning it to Earth for processing.

The freezer being delivered will store samples of blood, urine and other materials that will eventually be taken back to Earth for study on the effects of zero-gravity.

The COLBERT treadmill, named after popular US comedy talkshow host Stephen Colbert, will be the second aboard the ISS. Exercise is key for astronauts spending long periods of time in space, where zero-gravity can result in muscle atrophy.

The mission will be the 128th for the space shuttle program, and the 30th mission to the ISS, a project jointly run by 16 countries at a cost of 100 billion dollars.

Once the Discovery mission is complete, just six more shuttle flights remain before NASA's three shuttles are retired in September 2010.

earlier related report
US shuttle Discovery lifts off on the way to space station
The space shuttle Discovery was on its way to the International Space Station Saturday after blasting off from the Kennedy Space Center on a 13-day mission to equip to space outpost.

Discovery roared into the dark nighttime Florida sky at 11:59 pm Friday (0359 GMT Saturday), as scheduled, and reached orbit a few minutes later.

"I wish you and to your team good luck and Godspeed," National Aeronautics and Space Administration launch director Pete Nickolenko told Discovery team leader Rick Sturckow shortly before launch.

Bill Gerstenmaier, associated administrator for space operations, told reporters after the launch a preliminary examination by NASA specialists showed no damage to the shuttle during liftoff.

"We got a pretty look at the tank," Gerstenmaier said. "We did not see anything really abnormal. I did not see any foam loss."

Preparations for takeoff began earlier Friday with the filling of Discovery's fuel tank -- a process that takes about three hours.

The tank, painted a bright orange color and attached to the outside of the shuttle, is 46.9 meters (154 feet) high -- roughly the same as the Statue of Liberty.

Discovery, and its crew of seven astronauts -- including one Swede -- is to deliver to the ISS equipment for a new bedroom, a treadmill, a freezer, food and other supplies. It will rendezvous and dock with the station Sunday.

It will also be dropping off the newest member of the ISS team -- US astronaut Nicole Stott, who will be taking over from engineer and fellow American Tim Kopra.

Kopra has been aboard the ISS since July and is returning to Earth with the Discovery.

The launch has so far been delayed three times. A first attempt on Tuesday was cancelled shortly before liftoff when weather conditions were deemed too dangerous, and two subsequent attempts were thwarted by problems with a liquid hydrogen fill-and-drain valve.

NASA engineers eventually discovered that the problem was caused by false instrument readings and devised a method of determining if the valve was properly closed in case the instruments malfunction again.

The crew will be delivering to the station 6.8 tonnes of cargo transported in a pressurized module called Leonardo that was built by the Italian space agency.

Two astronauts from the team are scheduled to conduct three spacewalks of six-and-a-half hours each during the 13-day mission, the fourth of five planned for the shuttle this year. The last is scheduled for November.

One of the key goals of the space walks is the replacement of an old liquid ammonia tank, which will be substituted with a new 800 kilogram replacement. The substance is used as a coolant.

The astronauts will also be retrieving experiment equipment from the exterior of the ISS and returning it to Earth for processing.

The Discovery team is delivering a freezer and a treadmill. The freezer will store samples of blood, urine and other materials that will eventually be taken back to Earth for study on the effects of zero-gravity.

The COLBERT treadmill, named after popular US comedy talkshow host Stephen Colbert, will be the second aboard the ISS. Exercise is key for astronauts spending long periods of time in space, where zero-gravity can result in muscle atrophy.

The mission will be the 128th for the space shuttle program, and the 30th mission to the ISS.

Once the Discovery mission is complete, just six more shuttle flights remain before NASA's three shuttles are retired in September 2010.

The International Space Station is a project jointly run by 16 countries at a cost of 100 billion dollars -- largely financed by the United States.