Cygnus NG-15

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NG-15
ISS-64 The Cygnus space freighter moments before its capture.jpg
Canadarm2 approaches the S.S. Katherine Johnson
NamesOA-15 (2016–2018)
Mission type ISS logistics
Operator Northrop Grumman
COSPAR ID 2021-013A OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
SATCAT no. 47689
Website NG-15
Mission duration131 days, 7 hours, 53 minutes
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftS.S. Katherine Johnson
Spacecraft type Enhanced Cygnus
Manufacturer
Start of mission
Launch date20 February 2021, at 17:36:50 UTC [1]
Rocket Antares 230+
Launch site Wallops Pad 0A
ContractorNorthrop Grumman
End of mission
DisposalDeorbited
Decay date2 July 2021, at 01:30 UTC
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric orbit
Regime Low Earth orbit
Inclination 51.63°
Berthing at the International Space Station
Berthing port Unity nadir [2]
RMS capture22 February 2021, at 09:38 UTC [3]
Berthing date22 February 2021, 12:16 UTC [3]
Unberthing date29 June 2021 13:20 UTC
RMS release29 June 2021, at 16:32 UTC [4]
Time berthed127 days
Cargo
Mass3,810 kg (8,400 lb)
Pressurised3,734 kg (8,232 lb)
Unpressurised76 kg (168 lb)
Cygnus NG-15 Patch.png
NASA insignia  
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NG-15, [1] [5] [6] previously known as OA-15, was the fifteenth launch of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its fourteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 20 February 2021 at 17:36:50 UTC. [1] [7] This is the fourth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract. [8] [9]

Contents

Orbital ATK (now Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems) and NASA jointly developed a new space transportation system to provide commercial cargo resupply services to the International Space Station (ISS). Under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, Orbital ATK designed, acquired, built, and assembled these components: Antares, a medium-class launch vehicle; Cygnus, an advanced spacecraft using a Pressurized Cargo Module (PCM) provided by industrial partner Thales Alenia Space of Turin, Italy, and a Service Module based on the Orbital GEOStar satellite bus. [10]

History

Launch of the Antares rocket carrying the Cygnus spacecraft NG15 Launch (WFF-2021-007-002) (cropped).jpg
Launch of the Antares rocket carrying the Cygnus spacecraft

NASA held a pre-launch briefing for the Northrop Grumman Cygnus NG-15 cargo launch to the International Space Station (ISS) on 19 February 2021 at 16:00 UTC. Late cargo loading concluded on 19 February 2021. The Cygnus NG-15 spacecraft launched the next day at 17:36:50 UTC on an Antares launch vehicle from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Virginia. Cygnus NG-15 is the fourth Cygnus mission under the Commercial Resupply Services-2 contract. Production and integration of Cygnus spacecraft are performed in Dulles, Virginia. The Cygnus service module is mated with the pressurized cargo module at the launch site, and mission operations are conducted from control centers in Dulles, Virginia and Houston, Texas. [10]

Spacecraft

The Cygnus spacecraft is mated with the Antares rocket on 8 February 2021. Cygnus Spacecraft Mates With Antares Rocket (50935467008) (cropped).jpg
The Cygnus spacecraft is mated with the Antares rocket on 8 February 2021.

This was the tenth flight of the Enhanced-sized Cygnus PCM (Pressurized Cargo Module). [11] On 1 February 2021, the start of Black History Month, Northrop Grumman announced the name of Katherine Johnson, NASA mathematician, as the name of the Cygnus spacecraft. [9] [12]

Manifest

Cargo being loaded into the Cygnus in February 2021. Cargo Placed in the Northrop Grumman Cygnus Spacecraft (50937247607).jpg
Cargo being loaded into the Cygnus in February 2021.

Cygnus spacecraft is loaded with 3,810 kg (8,400 lb) of research, hardware, and crew supplies. [5] [6] [13] [14] This is the heaviest CRS cargo launch for NASA to ISS. [15]

Hardware

NASA provided the following breakdown of the cargo's hardware for ISS: [5]

Research

The new experiments arriving at the orbiting laboratory on the Cygnus NG-15 mission supports science from human health to high-powered computing, and utilizes the space station as a proving ground for the technologies needed for future missions to the Moon and on to Mars. [5] [14]

Cubesats

ELaNa 33, Educational Launch of Nanosatellites, will deploy the following CubeSats from ISS: [16]

Nanoracks deployer: two CubeSats released via Nanoracks CubeSat Deployer, on 30 June 2021 at 22:50 UTC, [17] including IT-SPINS and MySat-2 (Dhabisat-2), the second CubeSat developed by Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. MySat-2 was developed as part of Khalifa's Space Systems and Technology Concentration, a joint program established in 2015 with UAE-based satellite operator Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat) and Northrop Grumman.

GuaraniSat 1 : the first satellite of Paraguay. The space agency of Paraguay says the CubeSat was developed in partnership with engineers in Japan and universities and research centers in Paraguay. [18]

ThinSat-2 : 42 satellites as part of a STEM outreach program (for grades 4-12 and through the university level) by the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority. These was launched from the Antares second stage, with Cygnus.

Deorbited

Once its mission has been completed, Cygnus will perform a safe, destructive reentry into atmosphere of Earth over the Pacific Ocean. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uncrewed spaceflights to the International Space Station</span> Wikimedia list article

Uncrewed spaceflights to the International Space Station (ISS) are made primarily to deliver cargo, however several Russian modules have also docked to the outpost following uncrewed launches. Resupply missions typically use the Russian Progress spacecraft, European Automated Transfer Vehicles, Japanese Kounotori vehicles, and the American Dragon and Cygnus spacecraft. The primary docking system for Progress spacecraft is the automated Kurs system, with the manual TORU system as a backup. ATVs also use Kurs, however they are not equipped with TORU. Progress and ATV can remain docked for up to six months. The other spacecraft — the Japanese HTV, the SpaceX Dragon and the Northrop Grumman Cygnus — rendezvous with the station before being grappled using Canadarm2 and berthed at the nadir port of the Harmony or Unity module for one to two months. Under CRS phase 2, Cargo Dragon will dock autonomously at IDA-2 or 3 as the case may be. As of May 2022, Progress spacecraft have flown most of the uncrewed missions to the ISS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus (spacecraft)</span> Uncrewed cargo spacecraft developed by Orbital Sciences

Cygnus is an expendable American cargo spacecraft developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation and now manufactured and launched by Northrop Grumman Space Systems as part of NASA's Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program. It is launched by Northrop Grumman's Antares rocket or ULA's Atlas V and is designed to transport supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) following the retirement of the American Space Shuttle. Since August 2000, ISS resupply missions have been regularly flown by the Russian Progress spacecraft, as well as by the European Automated Transfer Vehicle, and the Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle. With the Cygnus spacecraft and the SpaceX Dragon, NASA seeks to increase its partnerships with domestic commercial aviation and aeronautics industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commercial Resupply Services</span> Series of contracts awarded by NASA from 2008-present for delivery of cargo and supplies to the ISS

Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) are a series of flights awarded by NASA for the delivery of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) on commercially operated spacecraft. The first CRS contracts were signed in 2008 and awarded $1.6 billion to SpaceX for twelve cargo Dragon and $1.9 billion to Orbital Sciences for eight Cygnus flights, covering deliveries to 2016. The Falcon 9 and Antares rockets were also developed under the CRS program to deliver cargo spacecraft to the ISS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus Orb-1</span> 2014 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

Orbital-1, also known as Orb-1, was the second flight of the Orbital Sciences Cygnus cargo spacecraft, its second flight to the International Space Station (ISS) and the third launch of the company's Antares launch vehicle. The mission launched on 9 January 2014 at 18:07:05 UTC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nanoracks</span>

Nanoracks LLC is a private in-space services companywhich builds space hardware and in-space repurposing tools.The company also facilitates experiments and launches of CubeSats to Low Earth Orbit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus Orb-3</span> Failed 2014 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

Orbital-3, also known as Orb-3, was an attempted flight of Cygnus, an automated cargo spacecraft developed by United States-based company Orbital Sciences, on 28 October 2014. The mission was intended to launch at 22:22:38 UTC that evening. This flight, which would have been its fourth to the International Space Station and the fifth of an Antares launch vehicle, resulted in the Antares rocket exploding seconds after liftoff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus OA-4</span> 2015 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

OA-4, previously known as Orbital-4, was the fourth successful flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its third flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. With the Antares launch vehicle undergoing a redesign following its failure during the Orb-3 launch, OA-4 was launched by an Atlas V launch vehicle. Following three launch delays due to inclement weather beginning on 3 December 2015, OA-4 was launched at 21:44:57 UTC on 6 December 2015. With a liftoff weight of 7,492 kg (16,517 lb), OA-4 became the heaviest payload ever launched on an Atlas V. The spacecraft rendezvoused with and was berthed to the ISS on 9 December 2015. It was released on 19 February 2016 after 72 days at the International Space Station. Deorbit occurred on 20 February 2016 at approximately 16:00 UTC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus OA-6</span> 2016 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

OA-6, previously known as Orbital-6, is the sixth flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its fifth flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 23 March 2016 at 03:05:52 UTC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus OA-7</span> 2017 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

OA-7, previously known as Orbital-7, is the eighth flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its seventh flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA. The mission launched on 18 April 2017 at 15:11:26 UTC. Orbital and NASA jointly developed a new space transportation system to provide commercial cargo resupply services to the International Space Station (ISS). Under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, then Orbital Sciences designed and built Antares, a medium-class launch vehicle; Cygnus, an advanced maneuvering spacecraft, and a Pressurized Cargo Module which is provided by Orbital's industrial partner Thales Alenia Space.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus OA-8E</span> 2017 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

OA-8E was the ninth flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its eighth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 12 November 2017 at 12:19:51 UTC. Orbital and NASA jointly developed a new space transportation system to provide commercial cargo resupply services to the International Space Station (ISS). Under the Commercial Orbital Transportation System (COTS) program, then Orbital Sciences designed and built Antares, a medium-class launch vehicle; Cygnus, an advanced maneuvering spacecraft, and a Pressurized Cargo Module which is provided by Orbital's industrial partner Thales Alenia Space.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus OA-9E</span> 2018 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-10</span> 2018 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-10, previously known as OA-10E, is the eleventh flight of the Northrop Grumman uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its tenth flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 17 November 2018, at 09:01:31 UTC. This particular mission is part of an extension of the initial CRS contract that enables NASA to cover the ISS resupply needs until the Commercial Resupply Services-2 (CRS-2) contract enters in effect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-11</span> 2019 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-11, previously known as OA-11, is the twelfth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its eleventh flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 17 April 2019 at 20:46:07 UTC. This is the last mission from the extended CRS-1 contract; follow-up missions are part of the CRS-2 contract. Cygnus NG-11 was also the first mission to load critical hardware onto Cygnus within the last 24 hours prior to launch, a new Antares feature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-12</span> 2019 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-12, previously known as OA-12, was the thirteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its twelfth Commercial Resupply Services flight to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA. The mission launched on 2 November 2019 at 13:59:47 UTC). This was the first launch of Cygnus under the Commercial Resupply Services 2 (CRS-2) contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-13</span> 2020 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-13, previously known as OA-13, was the fourteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its thirteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 15 February 2020 at 20:21:01 UTC after nearly a week of delays. This is the second launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-14</span> 2020 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-14, previously known as OA-14, was the fifteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its fourteenth flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. The mission was launched on 3 October 2020, at 01:16:14 UTC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-16</span> 2021 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

Cygnus NG-16, previously known as Cygnus OA-16, was the sixteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its fifteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The mission was launched on 10 August 2021 at 22:01:05 UTC, for a (planned) 90-day mission at the ISS. This was the fifth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-17</span> 2022 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

Cygnus NG-17, previously known as Cygnus OA-17, was the seventeenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its sixteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 19 February 2022. It was the sixth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-18</span> Planned 2022 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-18 is the eighteenth planned flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its sixteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The mission is scheduled to launch on 6 November 2022. This is the seventh launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-19</span> Uncrewed resupply spacecraft

NG-19 is the nineteenth planned flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its sixteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The mission is scheduled to launch in February 2023. This is the eighth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Antares rocket launches heavy cargo load to International Space Station". Spaceflight Now. 20 February 2021. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  2. ↑ "NASA TV Coverage Set for Next Cargo Launch to Space Station". NASA. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2021.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  3. 1 2 "Cygnus Resupply Ship Bolted to Station's Unity Module". NASA. 22 February 2021. Retrieved 23 February 2021.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  4. ↑ "Cygnus supply ship departs space station after four-month mission". Spaceflight Now. 29 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Overview CRS-15 (NG-15) Mission" (PDF). NASA. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2021.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  6. 1 2 "Cygnus NG-15 Mission Profile" (PDF). Northrop Grumman. 1 February 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  7. ↑ Powers, Kelly. "Worm muscles, artificial retinas, space laptops: NASA Wallops launches rocket to ISS". Dover Post. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  8. ↑ Gebhardt, Chris (1 June 2018). "Orbital ATK looks ahead to CRS-2 Cygnus flights, Antares on the commercial market". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  9. 1 2 "Cygnus NG-15 Mission Page". Northrop Grumman. 26 January 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  10. 1 2 "Cygnus Spacecraft". Northrop Grumman. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  11. ↑ Leone, Dan (17 August 2015). "NASA Orders Two More ISS Cargo Missions From Orbital ATK". SpaceNews. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  12. ↑ "Northrop Grumman names NG-15 Cygnus spacecraft in honor of Katherine Johnson". The Herald-Dispatch. 1 February 2021. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  13. ↑ "Northrop Grumman Commercial Resupply". ISS Program Office. NASA. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2020.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  14. 1 2 Howell, Elizabeth (1 February 2021). "Northrop Grumman to launch next Cygnus cargo ship for NASA on February 20". SPACE.com. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  15. ↑ Clark, Stephen (19 February 2021). "Antares rocket loaded with time-sensitive cargo for launch to space station Saturday". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  16. ↑ "Upcoming ELaNa CubeSat Launches". NASA. 6 May 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2020.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  17. ↑ "Nanoracks Ninth CubeSat Deployment Mission From the Cygnus". Nanoracks. 30 June 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2021.
  18. ↑ Clark, Stephen (20 February 2021). "Antares rocket launches heavy cargo load to International Space Station". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 20 February 2021.
  19. ↑ "Cygnus NG-15 Mission" (PDF). Northrop Grumman. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
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