ESA ATV-2 Launched by Ariane 5

From a jungle launch pad at Kourou, French Guiana on the northern coast of South America, a European Space Agency/Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket blasted off on Feb. 16, 2011, carrying the "Johannes Kepler" Automated Transfer Vehicle cargo craft to orbit. This starts an eight-day flight that will culminate in a automatic docking to the aft end of the International Space Station's Zvezda Service Module. This is the second of ESA's resupply vehicles, and is loaded with about seven tons of supplies and propellant for use by the six crew members on the complex.