SpaceX cargo ship arrives safely at space station – USA TODAY

USA Today Network James Dean, Florida Today Published 6:39 a.m. ET Feb. 23, 2017 | Updated 12:28 p.m. ET Feb. 23, 2017

SpaceX's Dragon cargo ship docked with the International Space Station on Thursday, a day after a GPS problem prevented the capsule from coming too close. AP

The SpaceX Dragon capsule flying the CRS-10 cargo resupply mission was captured by the International Space Station's robotic arm at 5:44 a.m. EST Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017.(Photo: NASA TV)

MELBOURNE, Fla.A SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying nearly 5,500 pounds of supplies and science experiments arrived safely at the International Space Station early Thursday, a day later than planned after an aborted rendezvousWednesday.

French astronaut Thomas Pesquet steered a 58-foot robotic arm to snare the unmanned Dragon at 5:44 p.m. EST, as the two spacecraft flew 250 miles above northwestern Australia.

"Looks like we got a great capture," crewmate and Expedition 50 commander Shane Kimbrough radioed to flight controllers in Houston.

"Great job with Dragon capture, and sorry about the delays," responded NASA astronaut Mike Hopkins, who was communicating with the crew from the ground. "Now the real work starts."

Related: SpaceX cargo ship scrapped docking at space station

Pesquet said the six-person space stationcrew was "very happy" to have Dragon on board and complemented the public-private partnership behind the commercial resupply mission that launched Sunday on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center.

"Such a strong partnership between agencies and commercial entities together with the international partners is without a doubt the future of space exploration, and were paving the way every day on the ISS," he said.

By 8:15a.m., robotics teams on the groundattached the Dragon to the Earth-facing port of the station's Harmony module for a monthlong stay.

The crew planned to open the Dragon's hatch later Thursday to begin removing time-sensitive science experiments.

More than half of the cargo is dedicated to science research, including a pair of NASA science instruments that will monitor Earth's ozone layer and lightning strikes. Another NASA instrument will test guidance systems for missions that would attempt to robotically service satellites.

Other research includes studies of tissue regeneration, involving 20 mice in orbit; of stem cells that could be applied to stroke treatments; and of protein crystals that could improve cancer drugs.

Related:SpaceX launches rocket from historic NASA launchpad

On Wednesday, the Dragon flew within about 1,200 feet of the station before backing out of its approach. NASA said flight computers triggered the abort after recognizinga problem with navigation data calculating the Dragon's position relative to the station.

Afterthe Dragon's berthing Thursday, aRussian Progress resupply ship, flying for the first time since a failed launch on Dec. 1, 2016, is scheduled to dock at the outpost around 3:30 a.m. EST Friday.

The next U.S. commercial cargo ship in line to fly, Orbital ATK's Cygnus, is being prepared for a March 19 launch from Cape Canaveral on a United Launch AllianceAtlas Vrocket.

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SpaceX cargo ship arrives safely at space station - USA TODAY