News / Science & Technology

SpaceX Capsule Docks at ISS

This frame grab made available by NASA TV shows a view of the SpaceX Dragon anchoring to the International Space Station, March 3, 2013.
This frame grab made available by NASA TV shows a view of the SpaceX Dragon anchoring to the International Space Station, March 3, 2013.
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VOA News
The privately-owned unmanned Dragon cargo spaceship has docked at the International Space Station, after engineers fixed a problem that delayed the docking by one day.

Dragon was captured by the space station's robotic arm early Sunday.  

The spacecraft, owned and operated by SpaceX, ran into problems shortly after liftoff Friday.  Minutes after the launch, SpaceX founder Elon Musk reported three of the craft's four sets of thrusters had not activated normally.  Engineers were later able to get all four working.

Dragon is scheduled to remain at the station for three weeks, as part of the second SpaceX resupply mission.  The capsule is carrying science equipment, food, and spare parts for the station's six-person crew, and will return to Earth with samples, specimens and other items.

Dragon Resupply Capsule LaunchesDragon Resupply Capsule Launches
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Dragon Resupply Capsule Launches
Dragon Resupply Capsule Launches
NASA has contracted the California-based SpaceX to carry out at least 12 resupply missions to the space station in the next several years.  

The Falcon-9 rocket carried the Dragon capsule into orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida.  

The SpaceX company's first successful docking was in May.  Since the termination of NASA's space-shuttle program, the Falcon-9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft have been the only U.S. vehicles capable of ferrying cargo to the space station.

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