Japanese cargo ship arrives at the space station

A Japanese robotic cargo ship arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) five days after takeoff.

The large robotic arm of the orbiting laboratory seized today the supply ship HTV-7 at 07:34 EDT (11:34 GMT), while the ship and the station sailed 404 kilometers above the North Pacific.

HTV-7 was fully moored at the ISS at 10:09 EDT (1409 GMT), NASA officials said.

"We are excited to see HTV-7 arrive at the ISS," said NASA astronaut Drew Feustel, commander of Expedition 56, thanking the teams from Japan and NASA for their job. "It's always mind-blowing to see another space ship orbiting the space station and participating in this incredible international journey into space."

Feustel and his teammates can now start unloading the HTV-7 cargo: more than 5 tons (4.5 tons) of food, fuel, supplies and scientific equipment.

The HTV-7 was launched on an H-II rocket from the Japanese Tanegashima Space Center on September 22 at 13:52. EDT (1752 GMT, 2:52 am, September 23, Japan Standard Time).

"HTV" is the abbreviation for "H-II transfer vehicle". As its name indicates, the current mission is the seventh in the overall HTV ranking, also known as Kounotori (Japanese for "white stork").

HTV is one of four robotic spacecraft that carry goods to the ISS. The other three are the Russian Progress vehicle, Northrop Grumman's cargo Cygnus and the SpaceX dragon. The SpaceX spacecraft is the only one designed to be reusable; HTV, Progress and Cygnus vehicles all burn up in the Earth 's atmosphere when their orbital work is complete.

There are now five ships attached to the ISS: HTV-7, a Progress cargo ship, two Russian Soyuz ships carrying the crew and the expandable activity module Bigelow, an inflatable habitat built by the company Nevel Bigelow Aerospace.

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