A self driving space vehicle transporting cargo to ISS

Date: 19/09/2013
This time the cargo to the International space Station is not delivered by manned spacecraft. The spacecraft named Cygnus is unmanned and carrying 700 kg of cargo to the ISS.

The robot spacecraft Cygnus going to fly very close to the Space Station, so that the space station can stretch its robotic arm to hold and plug-in the spacecraft to ISS. The cargo will be unloaded and the junk from the space station loaded back to spacecraft. The junk carrying spacecraft will disengage from the ISS and fly towards earth and burn up when it enters the atmosphere.

Thales Alenia Space, which has developed the spacecraft is going to deliver nine Pressurized Cargo Modules in similar future flights to the ISS.