Drone’s view of Sunday’s SpaceX rocket landing

A Cygnus supply ship built by Northrop Grumman departed the International Space Station Monday, beginning an extended mission in orbit to deploy a pair of CubeSats and perform a NASA-sponsored fire experiment.

A hold-down test-firing of a Falcon 9 rocket Friday at Cape Canaveral marked a major step in preparations for SpaceX’s 13th mission of the year, scheduled for liftoff Monday with a commercial communications satellite.

A Dragon supply ship owned and operated by SpaceX departed the International Space Station early Monday and returned to Earth for a predawn splashdown in the Pacific Ocean southwest of Los Angeles with scientific specimens and other equipment. Astronaut Jack Fischer released the Dragon cargo capsule from the station’s robotic arm at 2:41 a.m. EDT (0641 GMT), and splashdown occurred around 8:12 a.m. EDT (1212 GMT).