`We understand that this house is in need of an extreme makeover and that you`re the crew to do it,` the space station`s skipper, Mike Fincke, said as he welcomed the seven shuttle astronauts aboard.
His crewmate, Gregory Chamitoff, was especially excited to see Endeavour. He`s been living on the space station for almost six months, and the shuttle is his ride home.
`Wow,` Chamitoff exclaimed. `You look beautiful ... I am smiling from ear to ear.`
Image: The space shuttle Endeavour lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on November 14. Astronauts aboard the space craft and the International Space Station have opened a hatch between their two vessels and met amid handshakes and hugs 223 miles (360 kilometers) above the South Pacific Ocean.
