CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – A SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule is set to dock at the International Space Station on Saturday, delivering supplies and scientific equipment for the astronauts on board.

The Dragon was launched atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, beginning its CRS-29 cargo mission for NASA. The cargo includes more than 6,500 pounds of supplies and scientific hardware, marking SpaceX’s 29th cargo mission to the ISS under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services program.

One of the scientific experiments onboard is NASA’s AWE, or “Atmospheric Waves Experiment,” which will study gravity waves in Earth’s atmosphere. Additionally, the ILLUMA-T project will test high-speed laser communications in orbit, exchanging signals with the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration, an instrument launched aboard a U.S. military satellite in December 2021.

In addition to the scientific equipment, Dragon is also carrying holiday treats for the ISS astronauts, including pumpkin spice cappuccinos, turkey, and cranberry sauce. The capsule is expected to spend about a month at the ISS before returning to Earth with 3,800 pounds of cargo loaded by the astronauts on board.

This return capability sets Dragon apart from other space station cargo craft, as both Northop Grumman’s Cygnus craft and Russia’s Progress vehicle are disposable and burn up in Earth’s atmosphere at the end of their missions.

The Dragon’s arrival at the ISS will be live-streamed on NASA TV, with the docking scheduled for 5:21 a.m. EST on Saturday. This marks another important milestone in SpaceX’s continued collaboration with NASA to support research and human exploration in space.