According to a March 1, 2013 story in Space.com, the latest cargo mission by the SpaceX Dragon was launched on top of a Falcon 9 rocket at 10:10 a.m. Eastern time from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Once the Dragon separated from the Falcon launch vehicle, a glitch occurred involving three of its four maneuvering thrusters.
The Dragon is carrying 1,200 pounds of supplies, including scientific experiments and consumables, including fresh fruit picked from the orchard from the father of a SpaceX employee.
As of this writing SpaceX technicians are attempting to override the Dragon’s systems in order to get the malfunctioning thrusters back on line. The Dragon is scheduled to be berthed with the International Space Station at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 2 after being grappled by a remote manipulator arm. After delivering cargo it will be loaded with 2,300 pounds of material to deliver back to Earth.
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