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Astronomy & Space vocabulary · Space Missions & Launches

Dock

Meaning in astronomy & space, with examples

/dɑːk/verbCommon term

In astronomy & space, dock means: To join two spacecraft together in space, for example when a crew capsule connects to a space station. The noun is 'docking'.

In Turkish: kenetlenmek

How it is used

Spacecraft dock with or dock to a station at a docking port. Modern capsules can dock automatically while the crew monitors. The opposite is 'undock'. 'Berthing' is when a robotic arm grabs a vehicle and attaches it.

Example sentences

  1. The capsule docked with the space station about 28 hours after launch.

  2. Docking was delayed while engineers checked a faulty thruster.

Common collocations

  • dock with the station
  • docking port
  • undock from
  • automated docking
  • space stationA large spacecraft that stays in orbit for years, where crews live and work for long periods and carry out experiments in microgravity.
  • crew capsuleThe small spacecraft that carries astronauts to and from space. It sits on top of a rocket for launch and returns to Earth under parachutes.
  • spacecraftAny vehicle designed to travel or operate in space, with or without a crew, such as a satellite, a probe or a crew capsule.
  • mission controlThe team and the room on the ground that monitor a spaceflight, talk to the crew or spacecraft and make decisions during the mission.

More terms: Space Missions & Launches

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