09 Dec Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft arrives at the International Space Station
After chasing the International Space Station for more than two days, a spacecraft that looks like a huge flying barrel caught up with it Wednesday on a resupply mission.
U.S. astronaut Kjell Lindgren used a robotic arm to grapple the unmanned Cygnus spacecraft, carrying more than 7,000 pounds of cargo, at 6:19 a.m. while over the Arabian Sea near the coast of Oman.
Orbital ATK, a Dulles-based company, launched Cygnus into orbit on Sunday evening in its first flight since its rocket exploded in October 2014. The launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket went flawlessly, as did the rendezvous with the space station, officials said.