Robotic Spacecraft Successfully Docks with International Space Station

European Space Agency (ESA) has announced that its robotic spacecraft has successfully landed in the International Space Station (ISS). The robotic automated vehicle was launched by ESA for delivering 3,800 pounds of dry supplies like food, clothes and devices to the ISS crew.

The docking of the unmanned spacecraft was successfully accomplished by the onboard computers of the robotic vehicle. The entire operations were carefully observed at the Toulouse-based ATV Control Center by the French and European space agencies and also by the astronauts on board the ISS.

The robotic spacecraft weighs 20 tons and it accurately determined its landing position via sensors directed at the space station’s laser reflectors. It was launched from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou by an Ariane 5 rocket on February 16.

The vehicle will remain at the ISS till June and will serve as a supplementary research module for the astronauts.