NASA's shuttle Discovery successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) two days after launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

"Welcome to the space station, Discovery," ISS commander Mike Fincke said when the shuttle docked.  "We're glad you're here."

During the scheduled 13-day mission aboard the ISS, the flight crew is expected to install the final parts required for the space station's solar energy power system.  Replacement parts for the water filtration system that will turn urine into drinkable water will also be installed in the faulty system.  Originally brought to the ISS in November, the recycling system promptly broke down without necessary parts to fix it.

There are already six solar wings installed on the ISS, and astronauts will install two more before heading back to Earth.  It's the final American-manufactured space station technology that will be installed on the ISS before the current generation of space shuttles will be retired.

JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata will become the first Japanese-born astronaut to stay aboard the ISS.

After first search of the shuttle before it docked, there were no obvious signs of structural damage that could have occurred during the launch.  Shuttle commander Lee Archambault maneuvered the shuttle through a 360-degree back flip acted out so astronauts had the ability to photograph Discovery's underside.  

NASA has been extremely cautious about threats to the shuttle after a piece of debris hit shuttle Columbia in 2003, which caused the shuttle to disintegrate when it tried to return to Earth.