Northrop Grumman’s robotic Cygnus freighter reached the Worldwide Area Station (ISS) early Tuesday morning (Aug. 6), carrying about 4 tons of provides to the orbiting lab.
The Cygnus, which launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday (Aug. 4), was captured by the station’s robotic arm on Tuesday at 3:11 a.m. (0711 GMT), because the duo have been flying over the South Atlantic Ocean.
The freighter — named the S.S. Richard “Dick” Scobee, after the commander of the tragic STS-51-L mission of the house shuttle Challenger — delivered practically 8,200 kilos (3,720 kilograms) of meals, scientific gear and different provides to the ISS.
Among the many experiments is Rotifer-B2, which is able to examine how spaceflight impacts DNA restore mechanisms within the rotifer species Adineta vaga.
“These tiny however complicated organisms are recognized for his or her capacity to resist harsh circumstances, together with radiation doses 100 instances increased than human cells can survive,” NASA officers wrote in a description of the current cargo mission, which is named NG-21, as a result of it is the twenty first ISS flight for a Cygnus automobile.
Rotifer-B2 “may enhance the final understanding of DNA harm and restore mechanisms for functions on Earth,” they added.
Associated: Details about Cygnus, Northrop Grumman’s cargo ship
The S.S. Richard “Dick” Scobee did not have a wonderfully easy trip to the ISS. Shortly after deploying from the Falcon 9’s higher stage on Sunday, the freighter missed a deliberate engine burn. The Cygnus then aborted the rescheduled burn 50 minutes later after detecting barely lower-than-expected strain readings.
However Northrop Grumman engineers evaluated the info and confirmed that the strain readings have been acceptable in any case, NASA officers introduced in an update today (Aug. 5). Cygnus carried out two engine burns and acquired itself on the right track for its ISS rendezvous.
Editor’s observe: This story was up to date at 3:20 a.m. ET on Aug. 6 with information of Cygnus’ arrival on the ISS.
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