Q&A with Rolf de Groot, head of ESA’s robotic exploration office

A commercial Dragon spacecraft glacially approached the International Space Station on Wednesday, allowing a robotic arm controlled by Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai to reach out and grapple the supply ship as it soared 250 miles over Africa, completing SpaceX’s 14th mission to the research complex, and the second by the same capsule.

A European satellite hosting a spaceborne laser crafted to measure winds in Earth’s atmosphere rode a Vega launcher into orbit Wednesday from French Guiana, a thundering sendoff for a three-year mission that could improve global weather forecasts.

Billionaire Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and the surging space company Blue Origin, spoke with reporters at the 33rd Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado.