Cargo ship docks with International Space Station 2 days after first attempt failed
By APSunday, July 4, 2010
Cargo ships docks with space station on 2nd try
MOSCOW — An unmanned Russian space capsule carrying tons of food, water and supplies to the International Space Station docked with the orbiting laboratory Sunday, two days after the first attempt went awry.
A video feed from Russian mission control just outside Moscow reported the docking took place on automatic systems without problems at 8:17 p.m. (1617 GMT; 12:17 p.m. EDT).
The space station has three Russian and three U.S. astronauts aboard as it orbits some 220 miles (350 kilometers) above the Earth.
The Progress cargo ship was to have docked with the space station on Friday, but failed. Russian controllers said the failure was due to the activation of a transmitter for the manual rendezvous system, which overrode the automated system.
Russian station commander Alexander Skvortsov said the Progress was rotating uncontrollably as it neared the station during Friday’s docking attempt, but officials from NASA and Russia later said the ship was never out of their control.
After the failed docking, it was moved to about 300 kilometers (180 miles) away from the station. A series of engine firings on Saturday reoriented the Progress.
The Progress ships have been the backbone of Russia’s unmanned cargo ship program for years. Their importance will increase with the end of the U.S. space shuttle program next year.
