The European Space Agency's first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), which is designed for re-supplying and re-boosting the International Space Station, has successfully docked with the ISS on the first try. After close-range tests in the past days, the final go-ahead was given for the high-tech contraption to dock to its port, which it flawlessly did at 1452 GMT.

"The ATV is so much more than a simple delivery truck, it is an intelligent and versatile spaceship which has just demonstrated its extraordinary skills," Daniel Sacotte, ESA's Director for Human Spaceflight, Microgravity and Exploration said in a statement right after the landmark moment.

"It is the largest and most complex spacecraft ever developed in Europe and the second in size of all the vehicle's visiting the station after NASA's space shuttle," Sacotte said.

After in Demonstration Day 1, March 31st, the ATV proved its capabilities to use the GPS system for docking maneuvers without endangering the International Space Station or its crew, in Demonstration Day 2 the control centre tested the second key element to a safe and successful docking, by using the ATV’s optical sensors.

These steps were necessary to ensure the safety of the multi-billion-dollar International Space Station and its crew, as well as the testing of the $2-billion European spacecraft.

"I knew it would be extraordinary, but to succeed like that on the first try...I think it's an incredible technical feat," said ESA Director Jean-Jacques Dourdain.

The European Space Agency announced on March 9 the successful launch of its first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) for re-supplying and re-boosting the International Space Station, dubbed Jules Verne after the legendary writer. The 20-tonne vehicle was sent into orbit by an Ariane 5 ES vehicle at 05:03 CET from the Guiana Space Center, Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

On the first mission of its kind, the Jules Verne ATV carries a 4.6-tonne payload, of which 1,150 kg of dry cargo, 856 kg of propellant for the Russian Zvezda module, 270 kg of drinking water and 21 kg of oxygen. The plan for future similar missions is to almost double this capacity.

Jules Verne will spend four months docked to the International Space Station, and on its way back, it is set to carry waste from the ISS. Upon entering the atmosphere, the ATV is scheduled to burn up above the Southern Pacific Ocean, in a controlled manner.