Cygnus completes rendezvous with space station

Completing a three-day journey from Earth, an Orbital Sciences Corp. Cygnus spacecraft reached the International Space Station this week, resupplying the outpost with critical provisions, experiments and other needed cargo.

The 16.8-foot-long, 10-foot diameter Cygnus supply ship was grappled by the space station's robotic arm at 1036 GMT (6:36 a.m. EDT) Wednesday at the end of a laser-guided final approach from underneath the 450-ton research complex.

It delivered more than 3,000 pounds of cargo to the space station.

These photos from NASA, European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev, who runs a photo blog from the space station, show the spacecraft's rendezvous and capture.

The photos also show views inside the space station's cupola, where commander Steve Swanson controlled the robot arm to grapple the approaching Cygnus spacecraft.

See our Mission Status Center for the latest news on the mission.

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev

Photo credit: Alexander Gerst

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: NASA

Photo credit: Oleg Artemyev