Emre Kelly

FLORIDA TODAY

An Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft packed with more than 7,600 pounds of supplies and science experiments arrived safely at the International Space Station early Saturday morning.

The Cygnus, named the SS John Glenn in honor of the pioneering astronaut, was secured at 6:05 a.m. Eastern time by French astronaut Thomas Pesquet using the station's 58-foot robotic arm. Astronaut Peggy Whitson joined Pesquet at the controls as the spacecraft orbited Earth about 250 miles above Germany.

Pesquet welcomed Cygnus on behalf of the five-person crew and congratulated teams on the successful mission that began on an Atlas V rocket when it launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 11:11 a.m. Tuesday.

[Atlas V launches SS John Glenn en route to ISS]

"We're very proud to welcome on board the SS John Glenn," Pesquet said. "The more than three tons of pressurized cargo in the Cygnus spacecraft will be put to good use to continue our mission of research, exploration and discovery."

By 8:39 a.m., teams had attached the Cygnus to the Earth-facing side of the Unity node on the station. The crew planned to remove supplies and equipment from the spacecraft later Saturday.

Experiments that flew on Cygnus included a chamber that will grow plants in space, an investigation that could improve chemotherapy for cancer treatment and new tools to produce Earth-like cell cultures. Along with supplies for the crew, Cygnus also launched with 38 CubeSats, some of which will be deployed from the ISS.

The spacecraft will meet a fiery demise in July after it departs the ISS and burns up in Earth's atmosphere.

Contact Emre Kelly at aekelly@floridatoday.com or 321-242-3715. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook at @EmreKelly.