Live coverage: Soyuz crew capsule departs station, lands in Kazakhstan

A commercial Cygnus resupply ship named for Robert H. Lawrence, Jr. — the first African American selected as an astronaut — is awaiting liftoff Sunday evening from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Virginia’s Eastern Shore to begin a 35-hour trip to the International Space Station.

A Northrop Grumman Cygnus supply ship carrying more than 7,200 pounds of provisions and experiments approached the International Space Station two days after its launch from Virginia, moving close enough for capture by the station’s robotic arm at 5:28 a.m. EST (1028 GMT) Monday.

Despite appearances and a presidential tweet suggesting otherwise, the United States is “100%” committed to sending astronauts back to the moon in 2024 and establishing a long-term, sustainable presence there as a stepping stone to eventual piloted flights to Mars, Vice President Mike Pence said in an interview with CBS News.