Dragon Capsule Opened: “Like The Smell Of A Brand-New Car”

International Space Station astronaut Don Pettit’s first words upon entering the Dragon capsule? “Like the smell of a brand-new car” he said  after he carefully opened the hatch for his first glimpse inside

Dragon connected with the station Friday, making history as the first private capsule to reach the orbiting spacecraft.

Pettit opened the hatch at 5:53 a.m. ET with Russian cosmonaut and station commander Oleg Kononenko by his side. The two men, wearing T-shirts, khaki shorts, goggles and masks gave the thumbs up to the camera after they floated inside.

The initial inspection went smoothly and ahead of schedule and the interior looked good, according to SpaceX, the private company that built and operates the Dragon.

The crew will now begin unloading the more than 1,000 pounds of cargo that Dragon brought to the space station, NASA says. The cargo includes food, clothing, computer equipment, and supplies for science experiments.