In what marked the second successful launch of SpaceX's Dragon capsule to the International Space Station (ISS), the commercial cargo ship was launched into the orbit on SpaceX's own Falcon 9 rocket at 8:35 ET on Sunday.

After having successfully completed its previous test-flight docking mission with the ISS, the unmanned Dragon capsule will now - for the first time - dock with the orbiting lab with cargo; thereby marking the first of the 12 twelve supply runs which California-based SpaceX's commercial spaceflight will embark upon through 2016, under the company's a $1.6 billion mega-contract with NASA.

The spacecraft - which blasted off on its first truly operational ISS supply mission, hauling 1,000 pounds of crucial science experiments and other important equipment - is likely to dock with the space station at 7:22 am ET on Wednesday.

According to the SpaceX officials, the Sunday launch of the Dragon capsule was a successful one, even though the there was some glitch with one of the nine first-stage engines.

About Dragon's successful launch, SpaceX's billionaire founder and CEO Elon Musk - monitoring the launch from SpaceX Mission Control in Hawthorne, California - said that the Dragon had been placed in its intended orbit by the rocket; while SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said: ""It's driving its way to station, so that's just awesome."