Spacecraft with Russian humanoid robot docks at Intl Space Station

MOSCOW - An unmanned spacecraft carrying Russia's first humanoid robot to be sent into orbit docked at the International Space Station, or ISS, on Tuesday, following a failed attempt over the weekend, according to the Russian State Space Corporation Roscosmos.

The life-size robot called Fedor copies human movements and can help astronauts carry out tasks remotely.

"Contact confirmed, capture confirmed," a NASA commentator announced, while a statement on the website of Roscosmos also said the Soyuz MS-14 craft had managed to dock.

On NASA TV, which broadcast the event, the commentator praised the vessel's "flawless approach to the ISS".

"Second time was a charm, ... the crew is up to seven," he said, referring to the six humans already aboard the space station.

The craft blasted off on Thursday from a Russian spaceport in southern Kazakhstan. Fedor is due to stay on the ISS until Sept 7, learning to assist astronauts there.

"Let's go. Let's go," the robot was heard saying during the launch, repeating the phrase used by the first man in space Yuri Gagarin.

Soyuz ships are normally manned on such trips, but this time no humans were traveling in order to test a new emergency rescue system.

Failed attempt

The MS-14 was carrying 670 kilograms of dry cargo including "scientific and medical equipment, components for the life-support system, as well as containers with food, medicines and personal hygiene products for crew members", Roscosmos said in a statement.

During the first docking attempt on Saturday, a fault occurred in the ISS equipment responsible for the safe approach and airlocking, making the Mission Control Center decide to withdraw the spacecraft to a safe distance to ensure the safety of the crew and the station.

Fedor - short for "Final Experimental Demonstration Object Research" - can be operated manually by ISS astronauts wearing robotic exoskeleton suits and it mirrors their movements.

Robots like Fedor will eventually carry out dangerous operations such as spacewalks, according to the Russian space agency.

Fedor is not the first robot to go into space. In 2011, NASA sent up Robonaut 2, a humanoid developed with General Motors that had a similar aim of working in high-risk environments.

It was flown back to Earth in 2018 after experiencing technical problems.

In 2013, Japan sent up a small robot called Kirobo along with the ISS's first Japanese space commander. Developed with Toyota, it was able to hold conversations - albeit only in Japanese.

ISS has been orbiting Earth at about 28,000 kilometers per hour since 1998.