According to a March 3, 2013 story in the Associated Press, the SpaceX Dragon cargo ship successfully rendezvoused with NASA’s International Space Station. The Dragon was captured by the space station’s robotic arm. The cargo ship was subsequently berthed with the ISS.
The Dragon successfully lifted off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in the early morning hours on March 1. A glitch caused three of the cargo ship’s maneuvering thrusters to fail to go online, however. But after several hours of tense work, SpaceX technicians were able to get all four of the thrusters and thus the Dragon under control. The problem delayed the berthing with the ISS by a day, however.
The Dragon delivered, “--640 seeds of a flowering weed used for research, mouse stem cells, food and clothes for the six men on board the space station, trash bags, computer equipment, air purifiers, spacewalking tools and batteries. The company also tucked away apples and other fresh treats from an employee's family orchard.”
The Dragon will remain berthed with the ISS until the end of March before detaching and returning to Earth with a cargo that includes science samples, old food containers, and used equipment.
The third visit of the SpaceX Dragon to the ISS is part of an initiative to commercialize Earth to low Earth orbit transportation in the wake of the retirement of the space shuttle fleet. In a few years, it is expected, crewed commercial space craft, including a version of the Dragon, will take astronauts to and from destinations in orbit around the Earth, including the ISS.
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