SpaceX made an early holiday delivery to the International Space Station on Sunday, bringing muscle-bound "mighty mice," pest-killing worms and a smart, empathetic robot. The station commander, Italy's Luca Parmitano, used a large robot arm to grab onto the Dragon three days after its launch from Cape Canaveral. The two spacecraft soared 260 miles (420 kilometers) above the South Pacific at the time of capture. "Whenever we welcome a new vehicle on board, we take on board also a little bit of the soul of everybody that contributed to the project, so welcome on board," Parmitano told Mission Control. It marks the third visit for this recycled Dragon.

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA – The International Space Station welcomed its first returning vehicle in years Monday -- a SpaceX Dragon capsule making its second delivery. Space shuttle Atlantis was the last repeat visitor six years ago. NASA astronaut Jack Fischer noted "the special significance" of SpaceX's recycling effort as soon as he caught the Dragon supply ship with the station's big robot arm. "That's right, it's flying its second mission," Fischer said. "We have a new generation of vehicles now led by commercial partners like SpaceX."

SpaceX has made good on a high-priority delivery - the world's first inflatable room for astronauts. A SpaceX Dragon cargo ship arrived at the International Space Station on Sunday, two days after launching from Cape Canaveral, and astronauts used a robot arm to capture the capsule. The Dragon holds 7,000lbs of freight, including the soft-sided compartment built by Bigelow Aerospace. A SpaceX Dragon cargo ship arrived at the International Space Station on Sunday, two days after launching from Cape Canaveral and astronauts used a robot arm to capture the capsule. The pioneering pod, packed tightly for launch, should swell to the size of a small bedroom once filled with air next month.