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SpaceX’s first-gen Dragon cargo capsule left the ISS for the last time
This morning, a first-generation SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule left the International Space Station (ISS).
SpaceX price hikes will make ISS cargo missions more costly
NASA said it will pay $400 million more for cargo delivery to the International Space Station (ISS) starting in 2020, thanks in part to a 50 percent price increase from supplier SpaceX. On top of that, the ISS will receive six fewer tons of cargo, so on a cost-per-pound basis, prices will rise by 14 percent for the second phase of commercial resupply (CRS-2) missions between 2020 and 2024. The information comes from a new NASA audit, and reveals new details about the 2016 bidding for CRS-2 missions.
Watch NASA's first 360-degree live stream of a rocket launch
Rocket launch videos are typically captured from afar, putting you in the shoes of a spectator in the crowd. NASA's live coverage of an Orbital Cygnus spacecraft's ISS resupply mission, however, will take you to the launch pad itself. For the first time ever, the agency will broadcast a live 360-degree video of a rocket launch on the NASATelevision YouTube channel tomorrow, April 18th.
SpaceX aims to launch ISS resupply mission on February 18th
After one of its Falcon 9 rockets exploded on the launch pad last September, SpaceX sprinted to get back on track, and achieved a successful comeback launch in mid-January. To deal with the backlog of launches delayed by the accident, the company set an ambitious schedule of liftoffs every two to three weeks. The first of these, they announced today, will be an ISS resupply mission using one of their Dragon capsules set to fly on February 18th.
Japanese cargo ship set to dock with the ISS at 4:30 AM ET
Less than two weeks after Russia's Progress 65 ISS cargo ship blew up on route to the International Space Station (ISS), the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) is coming to save the day. After a successful launch, JAXA's Kounotori ("White Stork") HTV-6 has caught the ISS and is slowly moving toward the Harmony Module. Crew members Shane Kimbrough and Thomas Pesquet, stationed in the "Cupola," will use the Canadarm2 to wrangle it onto Harmony's Earthward dock. NASA will broadcast the attempt starting at 4:30AM ET, with the initial capture around 6AM ET. Broadcast of the final docking will start at 9:15 AM.
Orbital's Antares launches cool science experiments to space
NASA and Orbital ATK had to put off Antares' comeback until the next day due to a glitch, but everything went well the second try. The rocket finally blasted off to space carrying a Cygnus spacecraft with supplies for the ISS, as well as a bunch of cool scientific experiments. One of its science payloads is the Saffire 2, the follow-up to the largest fire experiment conducted outside our planet. Saffire 2 will burn nine samples made of various materials aboard the Cygnus as it makes its way back to Earth. That will allow scientists to compare their flammability in microgravity to their flammability on the ground. The data they collect could help keep future spacefarers safe when they embark on long-duration missions.
Orbital rocket ready to launch its biggest ISS cargo ever
A resupply ship from Orbital ATK is ready to launch its largest cargo ever to the International Space Station. The newly redesigned Cygnus craft, first launched in December, is capable of carrying 25 percent more payload than before, and today's weighs nearly four tons. "It's like opening a box of goodies and finding some stuff you've been wanting and some surprises you didn't know about," says Orbital's Dan Tani, a former ISS astronaut. Along with the supplies, Cygnus will carry a 3D printer from Made in Space, two dozen nanosatellites and Saffire, an experiment to test the effects of fire in space.
NASA picks three private space companies to resupply the ISS
NASA will fund the International Space Station at least through 2024, so keeping the astronauts on it fed and experimenting is a big deal. That's why the nation's top space agency announced new resupply contracts for Orbital ATK and Elon Musk's SpaceX, two major incumbents that were joined by newcomer Sierra Nevada and its resumable, mini-spaceplane. Each company will get at least six resupply missions, but it's "likely" that NASA will buy more than 18 flights — NASA will grant additional missions based on what they and the station's spacefaring crew need at the time.
