Photos: Atlas 5 rocket aims for International Space Station

A rocket booster SpaceX used to launch a planet-hunting NASA observatory two months ago fired again Saturday at Cape Canaveral, clearing a major pre-flight checkout before blastoff June 29 with a space station supply ship.

In the home stretch of nearly a half-year on the International Space Station, four astronauts suited up and rode their SpaceX-owned Crew Dragon “Resilience” spaceship to a new docking port outside the orbiting research lab Monday, a first-of-its kind maneuver for the new generation of commercial crew spaceships.

Watch as NASA holds a briefing at the Kennedy Space Center on the four agency technology payloads that are part of the STP-2 mission flying into orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.