Tag: Cygnus
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Second launch deal inked between Atlas 5 rocket and Cygnus freighter
File photo of Atlas 5 launch. Credit: ULA CAPE CANAVERAL — Orbital ATK has ordered another Atlas 5 rocket to launch a second commercial Cygnus cargo craft for the International Space Station. The mission is in addition to the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 already scheduled for Dec. 3 from Cape Canaveral to launch a…
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Cygnus set for December Atlas V ride ahead of Antares return
Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft is set to return to International Space Station (ISS) resupply duties in December, hitching a ride on an Atlas V, prior to resuming operations with the modified Antares rocket in 2016. Cygnus has been out of action since the CRS-3/OrB-3 failure that occurred in October 2014 – with the full investigation…
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RD-181 engines prepared for shipment to U.S.
File photo of an Antares rocket on the launch pad at Wallops Island, Virginia. Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky The first pair of RD-181 rocket engines set to launch on Orbital ATK’s redesigned Antares rocket are in the final stages of acceptance testing in Russia ahead of their export to the United States in early July, officials…
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NASA orders missions to resupply space station in 2017
A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft approaches the International Space Station in September 2014. Credit: NASA NASA has ordered four additional launches to deliver cargo to the International Space Station in 2017 — three from SpaceX and one from Orbital ATK — to cover the research lab’s logistics needs until a new set of resupply contracts take…
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Orbital ATK targets resumption of Antares launches in March 2016
An Antares rocket lifts off from Wallops Island, Virginia, in July 2014. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls Space station resupply missions launched from Virginia’s Eastern Shore are set to resume in March 2016, after Orbital ATK integrates newly-built rocket engines into the Ukrainian-made booster stage of the company’s commercial Antares rocket and puts it through an on-pad…
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2014’s top stories in spaceflight
The year ended with a deluge of big news, reminding us of the risks of spaceflight and the thin margins between success and failure on the final frontier. 2014 was also a year of breakthroughs in the exploration of the solar system and the future of human spaceflight. The Spaceflight Now editorial team has ranked…
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Orbital picks Atlas 5 to launch next space station cargo run
File photo of an Atlas 5 launch in the “401” configuration, the same version that launch Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus supply ship in late 2015. Credit: ULA Orbital Sciences Corp. announced Tuesday it selected United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket to launch a Cygnus space station resupply mission in late 2015 while the company redesigns its…
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Return to Wallops: New Antares set for late 2015 hot fire
Repairs to the Antares launch facility at Wallops Flight Facility are expected to be completed within 12 months, in time for the return of the Orbital rocket – in her upgraded propulsion configuration – for a hot fire test at the end of 2015. The dramatic failure of the CRS-3/OrB-3 Antares launch resulted in damage…
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Orbital looking for Cygnus launch slots next year
File photo of an Orbital Sciences Cygnus cargo ship approaching the International Space Station. Credit: NASA Facing pressure to find a ride into space for its commercial Cygnus cargo craft in the wake of a catastrophic rocket failure, Orbital Sciences Corp. says it has found openings in the mission manifests of the world’s busiest launch…
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Orbital Sciences rocket, station cargo ship, lost in spectacular launch mishap
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS “SPACE PLACE” & USED WITH PERMISSION Updated after press briefing. Antares explodes moments after lifting off. Image: NASA TV An Orbital Sciences Corp. Antares rocket making only its fifth flight exploded seconds after launch from the Virginia coast Tuesday, erupting in a spectacular fireball and destroying an uncrewed Cygnus cargo ship in…