SpaceX Dragon capsule for CRS-34 filled with 6,500 pounds of cargo docks with International Space Station

SpaceX has confirmed a successful rendezvous and docking of the Cargo Dragon capsule meant for its 34th Commercial Resupply Services mission with the International Space Station (ISS). The spacecraft docked with the ISS at 6:37 am EDT on May 17, 2026, about 23 minutes earlier than planned. This means the ISS is now restocked with 6,500 pounds of supplies for the Expedition 74 crew as well as scientific experiments pertaining to multiple disciplines. 

The launch of CRS-34 took place on Friday evening at 6:05 pm EDT from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. About 10 minutes and 33 seconds into the mission, the process for the deployment of Dragon's nose cone began. Upon completion, the deployment exposed the four forward bulkhead Draco thrusters to the vacuum of space. These thrusters carried out a series of maneuvers that raised Dragon's orbit so that it could meet up with the ISS. An Approach Initiation (AI) burn was performed when the spacecraft was roughly 2.5 kilometers away so that it could catch up to the orbiting laboratory. 

Crew-12's Jack Hathaway and the European Space Agency's Sophie Adenot monitored Dragon from the ESA-built cupola as the spacecraft approached the ISS and docked to the forward port of the Harmony module. This brought the number of visiting vehicles to the space station to six as of Monday. NASA stated that this was the first Cargo Dragon spacecraft to fly for the sixth time.

The Expedition 74 crew will now unload the necessary supplies from CRS-34's Dragon before it departs from the station in mid-June to return time-sensitive research and cargo to Earth. Among the scientific cargo that Dragon delivered to the ISS is a project aimed at determining the efficacy of Earth-based microgravity simulators, a bone experiment that could produce new treatments for conditions like osteoporosis, and equipment to help researchers understand the effects of spaceflight on red blood cells and the spleen. An experiment called STORIE, which will help in the study of energetic particles that surround Earth and respond to space weather, has also been sent aboard CRS-34. It will be deployed on the exterior of the space station in a few days' time.

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