Late on Friday (October 2), the robotic Cygnus spacecraft from Virginia successfully exploded, carrying about 4 tons of gear to the International Space Station, including a new space toilet.
A Northrop Grumman Entrance rocket was launching the night sky with an almost full moon at 9:16 pm EDT (Oct Oct. 0116 GMT). Cygnus NG-14 Mission From NASA’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport to the space station Wall Loops Flight Facility On Wall Lops Island, Virginia.
Crafts 7,624 lbs. (45,4588 kg) cargo including scientific instruments, experimental space toilets, food, hardware and other supplies for the space station / 63/64 ast astronauts.
The launch was launched less than 24 hours late (Oct Oct. 1) on Thursday after a series of delays due to this week’s weather and the issue of ground support equipment.
Related: Check out the amazing launch photos of Enters and Cygnus NG-13!
Starting science in space
Along with crew supplies and hardware, the launch today sent several exciting scientific investigations and equipment to the space station. One of the most anticipated items onboard is the new space toilet, formally known as Universal waste management system. Astronauts on the space station will test a 23 23 million commode for future use by future crews on the station and on missions to the moon.
Cygnus is also investigating several others. For example, the experiment of growing radishes Plant Housing-02 The goal is to increase our knowledge of plants and food growing in space. In this experiment, researchers will investigate how plants grow with different light and soil conditions. This can “help optimize the growth of plants in space as well as assess their nutrition and taste.” According to a NASA statement.
The second experiment will help scientists develop more effective and safer cancer treatments. While testing cancer drugs in microgravity can help reveal treatments that make good candidates for safer, more effective and affordable drugs to treat leukemia and other cancers, NASA wrote in a single statement.
The second experiment will use a custom-degree0-degree camera that was launched at the station in December 2018 to make Experience an immersive virtual reality Which will allow people to experience what life is like “inside” the space station and really on the spacecraft. And A separate investigation Will investigate a unique process that could help astronauts on the space station produce urea and ammonia by converting urea into human urine.
In addition, Estelle will be launched Not an experiment, but a space station skincare serum. There, astronauts will take a photo of the commercial product in the space station’s Capola window. The effort is part of NASA’s efforts to further engage in commercial activity in Earth orbit.
Delay and launch details
Tonight’s inauguration was originally scheduled for Tuesday evening (Sept. 29), but the liftoff was delayed due to the expected weak weather conditions on Tuesday and Wednesday. NASA wrote. A launch attempt was stopped two minutes and 40 seconds earlier on Thursday before the liftoff due to ground support equipments glitch. Northrop Grumman engineers were able to identify and address this issue in a timely manner for tonight’s successful launch.
Cygnus is built by Northrop Grumman, a Virginia-based company that re-contracts with NASA, much like SpaceX, like the space station. The Cygnus spacecraft was named S.S. in honor of the Northrop Grumme astronaut. Kalpana has kept Chawla Kalpana Chawla Who, along with six other astronauts, died in the 2003 Columbia space shuttle crash. Chawla also flew to Colombia in 1997 as a mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator. She was the first woman of Indian descent to go into space.
The NG-14 is the 14th launch for the Cygnus and the spacecraft’s 13th mission to the space station.
“As the 14th flight of the ISS, Cygnus is a hard work for us to bring cargo and cargo from the ISS … it has brought in ten and metric tons of mass. And that’s key. [in bringing] “The research, the crew supply, the complex additions that we need on the ISS to continue operations.”
Docking with space station
The Cygnus spacecraft will arrive at the space station on Sunday (Oct. October). There, NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy, the mission’s 63rd commander, will capture the spacecraft from the station’s robotic arm. Evan Wagner, a flight engineer and Roscosmos cosmonaut, will act as the backup.
After capturing Cygnus, with the help of mission control in Houston, the station’s robotic arm will rotate and install the craft on the space station’s unity module, where it will stay until mid-December before departing to burn into Earth’s atmosphere.
Email Chelsea Gohd at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @chelsea_gohd. Follow us on Twitter @speed.com and Facebook.
