ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet and NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson during grapple and berthing of Orbital’s Cygnus supply spacecraft CRS OA-7 “John Glenn” from the Cupola observatory on the International Space Station.
Thomas and Peggy monitored the spacecraft’s approach, ready to step in if necessary. The duo then used the Station’s 16-m robotic arm to grapple the spacecraft at around 11 m away. NASA astronaut Jack Fischer is also visible in this video.
Cygnus carried over 3000 kg of cargo and was sent into orbit 18 April 2017, arriving at the Space Station 4 days later.
During his Proxima mission, Thomas will perform around 50 scientific experiments for ESA and France’s space agency CNES as well as take part in many research activities for the other Station partners.
The mission is part of ESA’s vision to use Earth-orbiting spacecraft as a place to live and work for the benefit of European society while using the experience to prepare for future voyages of exploration further into the Solar System.
More about the Proxima mission: http://www.esa.int/proxima
Connect with Thomas Pesquet: http://thomaspesquet.esa.int