"What we're telling them here is we thank them for being such great hosts," Discovery Commander Eileen Collins said.

"These are memories we'll have for ever," she told the two residents of the International Space Station (ISS.)

Live footage broadcast by NASA showed the seven Discovery astronauts, including a Japanese national, hugging and shaking hands with the Russian and the American who hosted them in space for eight days.

Following a brief farewell ceremony, the Discovery crew sealed the hatches, and later undocked from the orbiting space lab in what NASA described as "the first step on the road home to the Kennedy Space Center."

Pilot James Kelly then maneuvered the space shuttle into position to fly around the ISS to photograph it and check it for eventual wear and tear.

After the maneuver, Discovery was scheduled to head to the orbital position needed for Monday's reentry into Earth's atmosphere

The crew was earlier given the green light for their return after NASA decided loose fibers on the orbiter's thermal blanket should not compromise the shuttle's safety as it reenters the atmosphere.

But once it is back, Discovery will be grounded with the rest of the fleet until nagging problems with the shuttle's thermal insulation have been fixed, though NASA managers still hope they can launch another flight on September 22.

Foam insulation had fallen off the shuttle's external fuel tank as the craft blasted into orbit on July 26.

The same problem doomed Columbia, after debris hit the orbiter's left wing, causing a crack that eventually allowed superheated gases to penetrate the structure upon re-entry into the atmosphere.

A key goal of Discovery's 13-day mission was to test improvements made to the shuttle since Columbia burst into flames on February 1, 2003.

"We've got every objective accomplished on this mission. We now have data we've never had before," said Michael Griffin, administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Collins agreed.

"We've been happy to finally put the icing on the cake through this mission, we are so happy things have worked out so well, see you next week, see you on the ground," she said.

"It's been a wild ride," she said.

The crew still faces some nerve-racking moments when it starts reentry into the atmosphere.

"You only get one shot at it," said Paul Hill, lead shuttle flight director.

"De-orbit is not a risk-free activity," he said.

"During de-orbit, I'm sure I'll have a thought or two about Rick Husband and his crew," he said of the seven astronauts who perished aboard Columbia.

The shuttle is scheduled to land at the Kennedy Space Center, on Florida's Atlantic coast, at 4:46 am (0846 GMT) Monday.

NASA could leave the shuttle in orbit an extra two days if the weather turns bad. It also could order in California.

Before the descent, officials will check data to confirm Discovery is in good shape. New detectors pinpoint any abnormal temperature rise on reentry.

The mission initially had be scheduled to last 12 days, but an extra day was added on so the crew could transfer as much material and provisions as possible to the ISS, amid uncertainty over the date of the next shuttle flight.

The crew also retrieved waste and equipment to clear out space in the cramped orbiting lab.

During the mission Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi and his US counterpart Stephen Robinson conducted three spacewalks.

On Wednesday Robinson became the first astronaut ever to carry out a space walk beneath the shuttle during orbit, to extract two protruding pieces of fiber that risked overheating during the shuttle's reentry.

In another spacewalk, Noguchi and Robinson tested repair techniques adopted after the Columbia tragedy.

earlier related report
Shuttle Prepares To Undock For Return To Earth
Discovery's crew readied to undock from the International Space Station after NASA gave the shuttle a green light to return to Earth Saturday.

But after troubles on the first US shuttle flight since the 2003 Columbia disaster, US space agency NASA's most prominent program could again be on hold for several months.

"Discovery looks like a very clean bird," said Michael Griffin, administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

"We've got every objective accomplished on this mission. We now have data we've never had before."

The crew parked the Raffaello module -- used to ferry in food, supplies and spare parts to the ISS -- back in the shuttle cargo bay. For the return it is crammed with waste and equipment from the cramped orbiting lab.

The shuttle is to leave the space station at 0724 GMT on Saturday.

"It's been a wild ride," shuttle commander Eileen Collins said.

"We've been happy to finally put the icing on the cake through this mission, we are so happy things have worked out so well, see you next week, see you on the ground," she said.

"We are in really good shape. The vehicle is in pristine condition. All tests are good, we are ready to go," Paul Hill, lead shuttle flight director, said at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

"De-orbit is not a risk-free activity. Our big risk now would be weather," Hill warned.

Discovery will first fly around the space station to allow the crew to get new pictures of the laboratory.

"We are doing it to take pictures of the space station, snap some pictures from some angles we haven't seen since the last orbiter was there" in 2002, Hill said.

The shuttle is to land on Monday at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The touchdown time, weather permitting, has been set for 4:46 am (0846 GMT).

NASA could leave the shuttle in orbit an extra two days if the weather turns bad. It also could order a landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

The re-entry, which starts about an hour before landing, will be nerve-racking for the crew and NASA after Columbia burned up killing its seven astronauts on February 1, 2003.

"You only get one shot at it, since we are only a big glider," Hill explained.

"During de-orbit, I'm sure I'll have a thought or two about Rick Husband and his crew. At wheel stop, I'm sure all of us are going to think a lot about the 107 crew," Hill said, referring to the flight number of the Columbia mission.

Before the descent officials will check data to confirm Discovery is in good shape; it has new detectors to pinpoint any abnormal temperature rise on reentry.

NASA has warned, meanwhile, that it will not undertake new shuttle missions until it solves the problem with foam insulation which tore off the fuel tank on launch July 26.

Much of Discovery's 13-day mission was dedicated to inspections to try to make sure that debris from the fuel tank had not damaged the shuttle so that it could make a safe return to Earth.

It was this same problem that downed Columbia.

But according to internal NASA documents published Thursday in The New York Times, the space agency was warned in December 2004 that the way in which insulation was applied to the external fuel tank still posed a risk -- despite 200 million dollars having been spent to solve the insulation woes.

NASA officials clearly hope they will get the problem solved soon.

They are still keeping open a target date of September 22 for the next shuttle flight.

"Until we run out of time to make the September window, we'll preserve it," Griffin said.

earlier related report
Shuttle crew ready to return to Earth
Discovery's crew made final preparations Friday to leave the International Space Station after getting the green light to return to Earth.

But after troubles on the first US shuttle flight since the 2003 Columbia disaster, the space station is unlikely to get a new visit for several months.

The crew parked the Raffaello module -- used to ferry in food, supplies and spare parts to the ISS -- back in the shuttle cargo bay. For the return it is crammed with waste and equipment from the cramped orbiting lab.

The shuttle is to leave the space station at 0724 GMT on Saturday.

"We are in really good shape. The vehicle is in pristine condition. All tests are good, we are ready to go. De-orbit is not a risk free activity. Our big risk now would be weather," Paul Hill, lead shuttle flight director, said at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

Discovery will fly around the space station to allow the crew to get new pictures of the laboratory. "We are doing it to take pictures of the space station, snap some pictures from some angles we haven't seen since the last orbiter was there" in 2002, Hill said.

The shuttle is to land on Monday at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The touchdown time, weather permitting, has been set for 0846 GMT.

NASA could leave the shuttle in orbit an extra two days if there is bad weather. It also could order a landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

The reentry, which starts about an hour before landing, will be nervewracking for the crew and NASA after Columbia burned up killing its seven astronauts on February 1, 2003.

"You only get one shot at it since we are only a big glider," Hill explained.

"Before I go in (the mission control) building, I assume I'll have a thought or two about the 107 crew," Hill said, referring to the flight number of the Columbia mission.

"During de-orbit, I'm sure I'll have a thought or two about Rick Husband and his crew. At wheel stop, I'm sure all of us are going to think a lot about the 107 crew, as well as the 114 crew we are going to be very happy to see on the ground," he added.

Before that mission officials will check data to confirm Discovery is in good shape; it has new detectors to pinpoint any abnormal temperature rise on reentry.

Shuttle commander Eileen Collins said : "It's been a wild ride.

"We've been happy to finally put the icing on the cake through this mission, we are so happy things have worked out so well, see you next week, see you on the ground."

NASA has warned it is not going to run new shuttle missions until it had solved the problem with foam insulation which tore off the fuel tank on launch July 26. The same kind of damage spelled death for Columbia's crew of seven in February 2003.

Much of Discovery's 13-day mission was dedicated to inspections to try to make sure that debris from the fuel tank had not damaged the shuttle so that it could make a safe return to Earth.

But according to internal NASA documents published Thursday in The New York Times, the space agency was warned in December 2004 that the way in which insulation was applied to the external fuel tank was still a risk -- despite 200 million dollars having been spent to solve the insulation woes.

earlier related report
Discovery Shuttle Safe To Return To Earth
NASA on Thursday said the Discovery shuttle was safe to return to Earth after the US space agency decided not to order a new space walk for another repair.

NASA had considered an additional spacewalk to repair parts of a thermal blanket that was torn near the cockpit window.

But the agency decided that the loose fibers do not pose a threat to the shuttle when it reenters the atmosphere early Monday.

"Our indications are that nothing will come off or if it does, it would be very small. This little blanket turned out to be a huge effort. We believe the risk is remote, small. The remedy would be worse. We have cleared Discovery to re-enter," said Wayne Hale, deputy shuttle program manager.

With the astronauts returning in few days, President George W. Bush said the United States would pursue space exploration, including a return to the Moon and eventually a manned mission to Mars.

"It is important for our fellow citizens to understand that we're going to take the NASA mission beyond the current mission," Bush said, reiterating that the current shuttle fleet would retire in 2010 and be replaced with a new vehicle.

"The people I've talked to inside NASA are excited about the mission, the reinvigoration of the vision of exploration," he said from his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

The Discovery astronauts meantime continued to move provisions into the International Space Station before the shuttle undocks Saturday for its return to Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The seven crew are aiming to leave the ISS with the greatest possible load of reserve supplies as no new shuttle mission is likely for months. They also were clearing out garbage and excess equipment to free up tightly limited space.

Discovery is the first shuttle to dock at the ISS since the 2003 Columbia disaster.

But NASA has warned it is not going to run new shuttle missions until it had solved the problem with foam insulation which tore off the fuel tank on launch July 26. The same kind of damage spelled death for Columbia's crew of seven in February 2003.

Bits of insulation striking Discovery on launch punctured a thermal blanket beneath the cockpit window. But NASA decided the repair was not needed.

US astronaut Steve Robinson has already carried out one historic mission to repair Discovery and avoid a repeat of the Columbia tragedy.

Dangling at the end of a 58 foot (17.7 metre) long robotic arm and equipped with a hacksaw and forceps, Robinson easily pulled out two small pieces of ceramic-coated fabric used as gap fillers between the craft's heat-resistant tiles.

Experts had feared the protruding gap fillers could make Discovery overheat when it re-enters the Earth's atmosphere.

"Like a lot of Americans, I was amazed at the procedures that took place to repair the craft. It was pretty remarkable," Bush said.

"Ours is a country that values the safety of our citizens, particularly those we ask to take risks in space," he said.

Much of Discovery's 13-day mission was dedicated to inspections to try to make sure that debris from the fuel tank had not damaged the shuttle so that it could make a safe return to Earth.

But according to internal NASA documents published Thursday in The New York Times, the space agency was warned in December 2004 that the way in which insulation was applied to the external fuel tank was still a risk -- despite 200 million dollars having been spent to solve the insulation woes.

The December 2004 internal NASA report, by Conley Perry, a retired NASA division chief for quality engineering at the Johnson Space Center, said: "There will continue to be a threat of critical debris generation."

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