Live coverage: Japanese cargo craft arrives at space station

Japan launched a research satellite Tuesday to repeatedly fly through the Van Allen belts high above Earth, helping scientists sort out how chaotic geomagnetic storms form and evolve and potentially endanger astronauts, spacecraft and infrastructure vital to life on the ground.

SpaceX performed a dramatic high-altitude test flight Sunday of the company’s Crew Dragon capsule over Florida’s Space Coast, testing the human-rated ship’s ability to escape a rocket failure and save its crew before two NASA astronauts strap in for a flight to the International Space Station as soon as this spring.

The Orbital ATK commercial Cygnus resupply vessel departed the International Space Station on Friday after 72 days spent at the outpost, delivering more than 7,000 pounds of cargo and taking away 3,000 pounds of trash.