Live In Orbit: Shuttle Starts Stunning Flyaround

LIVE IMAGES: Refresh this page for periodic updates and the latest still image from NASA TV.

Shuttle Discovery pilot Tony Antonelli is guiding the spaceship on a one-and-a-quarter loop around the International Space Station, and his crewmates are beaming back sequential still video that shows the outpost with its newly installed set of solar wings.

Station commander Mike Fincke is using outpost cameras to search for the shuttle, which is about 600 feet directly above the station at this time.

Now he has it in his sights:

The flyaround began about 4:18 p.m. after Discovery reached a point 400 feet out in front of the station.

It will continue until 5:37 p.m. -- the time when Antonelli will fire shuttle steering thrusters in a final separation burn that will propel Discovery out of the immediate vicinity of the station.

You can watch the action unfold here in The Flame Trench. Simply click the NASA TV box on the righthand side of page to launch our NASA TV viewer. Be sure to refresh this page, too, for periodic updates.