Gallery: Antares rocket explodes

More photos show the successful liftoff of the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket flight carrying the Cygnus commercial cargo spacecraft for Orbital ATK and the International Space Station.

The astronauts living aboard the International Space Station snagged a free-flying commercial cargo ship filled with a bounty of supplies and new science this morning, pulling the vessel aboard as the two craft flew in formation 252 miles above the world.

China led the world with 34 orbital launch attempts in 2019 — including two failures — followed by 22 flights from Russian-operated launch pads and 21 satellite delivery missions originating from U.S. spaceports, all of which were successful.