SpaceX’s Dragon capsule has successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) after overcoming a thruster malfunction.
ISS’ robotic arm seized the cargo-carrying spacecraft at 5:31am EST on 3 March, a few days after it was launched by…
SpaceX’s Dragon capsule has successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) after overcoming a thruster malfunction.
ISS’ robotic arm seized the cargo-carrying spacecraft at 5:31am EST on 3 March, a few days after it was launched by the company’s Falcon 9 rocket.
Although the launch itself went ahead as planned, the company said it identified a minor problem with some of Dragon’s oxidation tanks after separating from the rocket. At one point this meant only one of the capsule’s four thrusters were operational
However, engineers were later able to return the spacecraft’s operations to normal, enabling it to dock with the ISS a day after the original timeframe.
Now berthed, Dragon’s cargo will be unloaded by ISS astronauts before it is refilled with nearly double the amount of supplies it brought up – around 1,210kg. The capsule, which could one day carry human passengers, will stay locked onto the ISS for around three weeks before a Pacific Ocean splashdown around 25 March.
In a post-flight press conference, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk was cited saying his best guess for the thruster issue was that a frozen piece of oxidiser had become stuck in the line. This was eventually warmed up enough to allow the liquid to flow normally.
The incident comes after a Falcon 9 rocket carrying Dragon late last year on another ISS resupply mission suffered an anomaly to one of its first stage engines. Although the capsule later reached the ISS, the rocket’s secondary payload, satellite operator Orbcomm’s OG2 prototype satellite, was placed into an orbit that was lower than intended.
SpaceX’s resupply missions represent important milestones for the nascent launch provider that is eager to prove the capabilities of its spacecraft.
The company became the first commercial firm to resupply the ISS in May 2012, and later this year it will embark on the commercial side of its launch manifest with SES-8 in Q2 2013.
