SpaceX - CRS-8 Dragon Mission patch.
April 10, 2016
Image above: The SpaceX Dragon approaches the International Space Station moments before its robotic capture. Image Credit: NASA TV.
While the International Space Station was traveling over the Pacific Ocean west of Hawaii, astronaut Tim Peake of ESA (European Space Agency), with the assistance of NASA’s Jeff Williams, successfully captured the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft with the station’s robotic Canadarm2 at 7:23 a.m. EDT.
Let the Unloading Begin Aboard the ISS
Dragon’s arrival marks the first time two commercial cargo vehicles have been docked simultaneously at the space station. Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft arrived to the station just over two weeks ago. With the arrival of Dragon, the space station ties the record for most vehicles on station at one time – six.
Image above: The SpaceX Dragon is seen shortly after it was mated to the Harmony module. The Cygnus cargo craft with its circular solar arrays and the Soyuz TMA-19M spacecraft (bottom right) are also seen in this view. Image Credit: NASA TV.
The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft was bolted into place on the Harmony module of the International Space Station at 9:57 a.m. EDT as the station flew 250 miles over southern Algeria.
The spacecraft is delivering about 7,000 pounds of science and research investigations, including the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, known as BEAM.
Related articles:
Experiments Headed to the Space Station Seek Insight on Challenges From Habitat Design to Drug Development:
http://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.ch/2016/03/experiments-headed-to-space-station.html
Dragon Cargo Headed to Space Station Includes Habitat Prototype, Medical Research:
http://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.ch/2016/04/dragon-cargo-headed-to-space-station.html
For more information about SpaceX's mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/spacex
For more information about the International Space Station (ISS):
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
Images (mentioned), Video, Text, Credits: NASA/NASA TV/Mark Garcia.
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