{"id":11521,"date":"2021-08-12T18:14:07","date_gmt":"2021-08-12T10:14:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/cygnus-supply-ship-arrives-at-space-station-with-four-tons-of-cargo\/"},"modified":"2021-08-12T18:14:07","modified_gmt":"2021-08-12T10:14:07","slug":"cygnus-supply-ship-arrives-at-space-station-with-four-tons-of-cargo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/cygnus-supply-ship-arrives-at-space-station-with-four-tons-of-cargo\/","title":{"rendered":"Cygnus supply ship arrives at space station with four tons of cargo"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Northrop Grumman\u2019s Cygnus supply ship arrives at the International Space Station on Thursday. Credit: Thomas Pesquet\/ESA\/NASA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Closing out a 36-hour flight from a launch pad in Virginia, a Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo ship arrived at the International Space Station Thursday with a host of biomedical experiments, supplies for a 3D printing tech demo, fresh food, and spare parts.<\/p>\n

The automated cargo freighter completed a laser-guided final approach to the space station, and held position less than 40 feet (12 meters) below the complex. Astronaut Megan McArthur used the lab\u2019s Canadian built robotic arm to reach out and capture the Cygnus spacecraft at 6:07 a.m. EDT (1007 GMT) Thursday as the space station flew more than 260 miles (420 kilometers) over Portugal.<\/p>\n

The arrival marked the 16th delivery of supplies to the space station by a Cygnus spacecraft since 2013, continuing a twice-per-year sequence of cargo runs by Northrop Grumman\u2019s unpiloted freighter.<\/p>\n

The Cygnus spacecraft for Northrop Grumman\u2019s NG-16 cargo mission is named for NASA astronaut Ellison Onizuka, who became the first Asian-American in space in 1985. Onizuka died with six crewmates on the space shuttle Challenger in 1986.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn behalf of the Expedition 65 crew, I\u2019m pleased to bring the Cygnus spacecraft \u2018S.S. Ellison Onizuka\u2019 aboard the International Space Station today,\u201d McArthur said from the station Thursday. \u201cOur congratulations go out to the combined teams from Northrop Grumman and NASA for the mission successes so far. This mission enables ground-breaking research, through which we hope to meet Col. Onizuka\u2019s challenge, to enable the next generation to look out from a higher plateau.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ground controllers took over commanding of the robotic arm to berth the Cygnus supply ship to the space station\u2019s Unity module a few hours later. Astronauts planned to open hatches and enter the cargo craft to begin unpacking supplies stowed inside the ship\u2019s Italian-built pressurized module.<\/p>\n

The mission launched Tuesday aboard an Antares rocket from Wallops Island, Virginia.<\/p>\n

The Cygnus spacecraft is scheduled to remain at the space station around three months. Astronauts will release the cargo freighter using the robot arm in November after packing the ship with trash and other unnecessary equipment.<\/p>\n

The supply ship will re-enter the atmosphere and largely burn up over the South Pacific Ocean.<\/p>\n

NASA has multibillion-dollar contracts with Northrop Grumman, SpaceX, and Sierra Nevada Corp. to ferry cargo to and from the space station. Northrop Grumman\u2019s two resupply contracts, valued at up to $6 billion, covers at least 19 operational cargo missions through 2023.<\/p>\n

The cargo delivered to the space station aboard the Cygnus spacecraft includes a technology demonstration to look at how future space explorers could 3D-print materials out of lunar soil.<\/p>\n