Rendezvous, Grapple and Installation of the SpaceX-5 Dragon to the International Space Station

Two days after its launch from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, the unpiloted U.S. SpaceX Dragon cargo craft arrived at the International Space Station Jan. 8 to deliver more than two tons of supplies and science experiments to the Expedition 42 crew. Awaiting the Dragon supply ship were station Commander Barry Wilmore of NASA and Flight Engineer Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency, who used the Canadian-built robotic arm to grapple Dragon as they operated the arm from the station’s cupola. Once grappled, robotic ground controllers at Mission Control, Houston maneuvered Dragon to the Earth-facing port of the station’s Harmony module, where it was installed and bolted into place for a month-long stay.