The Dragon spacecraft has just completed a major step of its CRS-2 (Cargo Resupply Service 2) mission being captured by the Canadarm2 robotic arm of the International Space Station. The docking operation will be performed by NASA astronauts Kevin Ford and Tom Marshburn to bring the Dragon to berth to the Harmony module. After the initial complications, this phase of the mission will really be a no-brainer.

When in the U.S.A. it was Saturday afternoon NASA and SpaceX managers established that the Dragon spacecraft systems and in particular the thrusters which had caused problems after the launch were working well. Consequently, they approved the plan to dock with the International Space Station today.

With all four thruster pods working for a total of 18 Draco thrusters, the Dragon spacecraft took about an hour and a half to complete the final maneuvers to approach the International Space Station that brought it to the point where it was captured by the robotic arm Canadarm2.

The thrusters were expected to have no further problems but more than ever attention has been paid to the maneuvers of approach to the Station. The Dragon spacecraft got closer and closer in small steps and each time the mission control center in Houston and the SpaceX team in Hawthorne have verified the accuracy of the maneuver and gave the OK for the next move.

Tomorrow, the astronauts on the International Space Station should open the Dragon spacecraft’s hatch and start unloading the items that were brought into orbit. Subsequently, a series of experiments and other objects to be brought back to Earth for a weight that’s more than twice as much as that arrived – about 1,210 kg (2,700 punds) compared with about 575 (1,200 pounds) arrived – will be loaded on the Dragon.

The date set for the return to Earth of the Dragon spacecraft remains at least for now March 25. At the arrival of the previous mission there was a problem of sea water infiltration that led to the loss of power for the freezers carrying biological samples. There was no damage because the temperature was kept low enough still changes were made to avoid further risks.

After Friday’s scare, with the demonstration of SpaceX skills to put back on its feet a mission that a certain point looked doomed, we can hope that the CRS-2 mission of the Dragon spacecraft has become routine.

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