Shuttle docks with space station, brings lab
Space shuttle Atlantis docked with the international space station Saturday, delivering Europe's $2 billion research lab after years of delay.
With commander Stephen Frick at the helm, Atlantis slowly and carefully pulled up to the space station and latched on after performing a giant backflip to give NASA a look at the ship's thermal shield.
The Columbus lab is the European Space Agency's main contribution to the space station. The Europeans had hoped to send the lab up in 1992 to mark the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' sailing, but the mission was delayed by station redesigns, stalled construction and shuttle groundings.
"We got some views of your station as we were still a long way out, and it looks like an amazing star on the horizon," Frick radioed as the shuttle closed in. "It just keeps getting better as we get closer."
