Less than an hour ago, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft was captured by the ISS robotic arm, in preparation for a first-of-its-kind docking maneuver. Upon completion, Dragon will be the first private spacecraft to dock at the ISS.

More from Universe Today:

“Looks like we caught a Dragon by the tail !” said a gleeful Astronuat Don Pettit who plucked the Dragon from space with the robotic arm as it was in free drift about 10 meters from the station.

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The Dragon cargo capsule is a commercial spacecraft designed and developed by SpaceX and was launched atop a Falcon 9 booster from Cape Canaveral, Florida on a historic test flight on May 22 to become the first private vehicle ever to rendezvous and dock at the million pound orbiting space complex.

Following a successful series of close approach rendezvous tests on Thursday, May 24, when it flew to the ISS from behind and below during fly-under maneuvers to within 2.4 km (1.6 mi), the commercial cargo carrier was cleared for final rendezvous, grappling and docking today.

(screen cap by Trammell Hudson)