The process of physically removing a visiting spacecraft from a docking port using a station's robotic manipulator arm. Because the visiting vehicle lacks the precise thruster control required to back away safely on its own, the arm grapples it, releases the structural latches, and maneuvers it to a safe release point in space.
Heard on the job
The crew will unberth the cargo module at zero eight hundred and release it for destructive reentry.
Do not mix it up with
- Undock: Unberthing requires a robotic arm to physically move the passive spacecraft, while undocking means the spacecraft flies away using its own engines.