A SpaceX shipment arrived at the International Space Station on Wednesday, delivering a bonanza of science experiments. <\/p>\n
The SpaceX Dragon capsule pulled up following a two-day flight from Cape Canaveral. NASA astronaut Jack Fischer used the space station's hefty robot arm to grab the Dragon 250 miles (400 kilometers) above the Pacific, near New Zealand. <\/p>\n
The Dragon holds 3 tons of cargo, mostly research. The extra-large science load includes a cosmic ray monitor, a mini satellite with cheap, off-the-shelf scopes for potential military viewing, and 20 mice for an eye and brain study. <\/p>\n
Lucky for the station's six-person crew, a big variety of ice cream is also stashed away in freezers, including birthday cake flavor. U.S. astronaut Randolph Bresnik turns 50 next month. <\/p>\n
\"Congratulations on a job well done,\" Mission Control radioed from Houston. \"You guys have just won yourselves some fresh food.\" <\/p>\n
It was 13th supply shipment by SpaceX. <\/p>\n
\"The crew stands ready to rock the science like a boss,\" Fischer said, giving a rundown on the research inside the Dragon's \"belly.\" <\/p>\n
It's enough for more than 250 experiments in the coming months, he noted. <\/p>\n
\"Need to get back to work. We've got a Dragon to unload,\" Fischer told Mission Control. <\/p>\n
SpaceX is one of NASA's two prime shippers for station supplies. Orbital ATK is the other; its next delivery is in November from Wallops Island, Virginia. The two companies have taken over the cargo hauls formerly handled by NASA's now retired space shuttles. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Online: <\/p>\n
SpaceX: http:\/\/www.spacex.com\/<\/a> <\/p>\n NASA: https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/missionpages\/station\/main\/index.html<\/a> <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Originally posted here: <\/p>\n SpaceX Dragon delivers scientific bounty to space station - ABC News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A SpaceX shipment arrived at the International Space Station on Wednesday, delivering a bonanza of science experiments. The SpaceX Dragon capsule pulled up following a two-day flight from Cape Canaveral Continue reading