Space Exploration Technologies Corp.’s (SpaceX) Dragon spacecraft successfully berthed with the International Space Station (ISS) recently, according to company statement.
Expedition 33 crew members Akihiko Hoshide and Sunita Williams first grappled Dragon and attached it to the station, completing a critical stage of the CRS-1 cargo resupply mission. Hoshide then used ISS’ robotic arm to capture Dragon and guide it to the station’s Harmony module before Williams installed Dragon to Harmony’s common berthing mechanism. This enabled Dragon to be bolted in place for an expected 18-day stay at the station.
Grappling completed at 6:56 a.m. EST and Dragon berthed at 9:30 a.m. EST.
The ISS crew will next pressurize the vestibule between the station and Dragon and open the hatch that leads to the forward bulkhead of the spacecraft. The crew will then begin unloading Dragon’s cargo, which includes crew supplies, vehicle hardware, experiments and an ultra-cold freezer for storing scientific samples.
Dragon is expected to be released from the ISS Oct. 28. Splashdown and recovery in the Pacific Ocean will take place the same day.
The launch of Dragon is the first of 12 contracted flights by SpaceX to resupply the ISS. SpaceX, along with Boeing [BA] and Sierra Nevada Corp., is one of three aerospace companies chosen by NASA to continue working over the next two years on commercial spaceships intended to carry astronauts to the ISS by 2016.