Nasa Cargo Spacecraft Set for Launch

Mission managers have given the 'go' for a 6.45 pm. (EDT) Monday launch from Nasa's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

The third commercial re-supply flight by a Cygnus spacecraft to the ISS will transport some 5,000 pounds of supplies and experiments to the orbiting laboratory.

There is a 98 percent chance of favourable weather at the time of launch, Nasa said in a statement.

Earlier, SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft splashed down into the Pacific Ocean, bringing back to the Earth hundreds of pounds of cargo and the results of critical, long-term research from the ISS.

The returned cargo could aid in the development of more efficient solar cells and semiconductor-based electronics, the development of plants better suited for space and improvements in sustainable agriculture.

"This mission enabled research critical to achieving Nasa's goal of long-duration human spaceflight in deep space," said Sam Scimemi, director of the ISS division at the Nasa headquarters in Washington, DC.