Discovery skipper Pam Melroy just pulsed the spaceship's lefthand Orbital Maneuvering System engine for 12 seconds, propelling the orbiter into the terminal phase of rendezvous with the International Space Station.
The Terminal Initiation -- or TI -- burn came as Discovery and its seven-member crew flew nine miles behind and below the station. It started the final stages of a ground-up rendezvous that began with the precisely timed launch of Discovery from Kennedy Space Center two days ago. The 11:38 a.m. liftoff on Tuesday put the shuttle on course for an 8:33 a.m. docking at the station today.
"Discovery, good burn," astronaut Chris Ferguson radioed up from the Mission Control Center in Houston. "No trim required."
The 6-mph engine-firing targets the shuttle for a point 900 feet behind and 1,800 below the station. A slight course correction then will follow, bringing Discovery 600 feet directly below the station at around 7:32 a.m. The orbital backflip will take place at that time.
IMAGE NOTE: Click to enlarge and save the NASA TV screen grab of the International Space Station as seen through the centerline camera on Discovery's Orbiter Docking System. The wings of the station can be seen (just barely) near the center crosshairs.
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