Cygnus NG-18

Last updated

NG-18
Blog cygnus capture 110922.jpg
Cygnus S.S. Sally Ride after arrival at the ISS, with solar panels damaged.
Mission type ISS logistics
Operator Northrop Grumman
COSPAR ID 2022-149A OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
SATCAT no. 54232 OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Mission duration165 days, 16 hours, 39 minutes
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftS.S. Sally Ride
Spacecraft type Enhanced Cygnus
Manufacturer
Start of mission
Launch date7 November 2022, 10:32:42 UTC [1] [2]
Rocket Antares 230+
Launch site Wallops Pad 0A
ContractorNorthrop Grumman
End of mission
DisposalDeorbited
Decay date22 April 2023, 03:12 UTC
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric orbit
Regime Low Earth orbit
Inclination 51.66°
Berthing at the International Space Station
Berthing port Unity nadir
RMS capture9 November 2022, 10:20 UTC
Berthing date9 November 2022, 13:05 UTC
Unberthing date21 April 2023, 08:37 UTC
RMS release21 April 2023, 11:22 UTC [3]
Time berthed163 days
Cygnus NG-18 Patch.png
Cygnus NG-18 mission patch  
←  NG-17
NG-19  →

NG-18 was the eighteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its seventeenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The mission successfully launched on 7 November 2022 at 10:32:42 UTC. [1] [2] This was the seventh launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract. [4] [5]

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 and a Service Module based on the Orbital GEOStar satellite bus. [6]

History

Cygnus NG-18 was the seventh Cygnus mission under the Commercial Resupply Services-2 contract. Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems confirmed on 23 February 2021 that Thales Alenia Space of Turin, Italy, will fabricate two additional Pressurized Cargo Modules (PCMs) for a pair of forthcoming Commercial Resupply Services-2 missions. Current plans are for the two additional Cygnus spacecraft to be designated NG-18 and NG-19. [7] [ when? ]

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. [6] [ when? ]

Spacecraft

This was the thirteenth flight of the Enhanced-sized Cygnus PCM. [5] [8]

The vehicle was named the S.S. Sally Ride , after the first American woman in space. [9]

Flight

NG-18 was originally scheduled to launch on 6 November 2022. However, a fire alarm resulted in an evacuation of Northrop Grumman's control center, and the flight was postponed to the next day. [10]

The mission lifted off from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on 7 November 2022. About six hours into the flight, NASA announced that one of the two solar arrays failed to deploy. The deploy failure was attributed to acoustic blanket debris being lodged into solar-array mechanisms during a stage separation event. [11]

Northrop Grumman reported that the spacecraft would still be able to reach the ISS. After assessing the situation, NASA determined a rendezvous was safe. [12] The vehicle reached the ISS on November 9. [13]

Manifest

The Cygnus spacecraft is loaded with 3,707 kg (8,173 lb) of research, hardware, and crew supplies. [14]

Research

The new experiments arriving at the orbiting laboratory will inspire future scientists and explorers, and provide valuable insight for researchers.

NASA Glenn Research Center studies: [15] [16]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antares (rocket)</span> Medium-lift expendable rocket by Northrop Grumman

Antares, known during early development as Taurus II, is an expendable launch system developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation and the Pivdenne Design Bureau to launch the Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station as part of NASA's COTS and CRS programs. Able to launch payloads heavier than 8,000 kg (18,000 lb) into low Earth orbit, Antares is currently the largest rocket operated by Northrop Grumman. Antares launches from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport and made its inaugural flight on April 21, 2013.

<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 but manufactured and launched by Northrop Grumman Space Systems as part of NASA's Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program. It is usually launched by Northrop Grumman's Antares rocket, although three flights were on ULA's Atlas V and three are planned for SpaceX's Falcon 9. It transports 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> NASA program for delivery of cargo 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 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-5</span> 2016 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

OA-5, previously known as Orbital-5, was the seventh planned flight of the Orbital Sciences' uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its sixth flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA. The mission launched on 17 October 2016 at 23:45:36 UTC. Orbital Sciences 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, Orbital 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-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

OA-9E was the tenth flight of the Orbital ATK uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its ninth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services with NASA. The mission launched on 21 May 2018 at 08:44:06 UTC. Orbital ATK and NASA jointly developed a new space transportation system to provide commercial cargo resupply services to the International Space Station. 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 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-15</span> 2021 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-15, 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. This is the fourth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<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 at 17:40:03 UTC. It was the sixth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-19</span> 2023 American resupply spaceflight to the ISS

NG-19 is the nineteenth flight of the Northrop Grumman robotic resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its eighteenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The mission launched on 2 August 2023 at 00:31:14 UTC. This is the eighth launch of Cygnus under the CRS-2 contract.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cygnus NG-20</span> Cygnus spacecraft mission to ISS

NG-20 is the twentieth planned flight of the Cygnus robotic resupply spacecraft and its seventeenth flight to the International Space Station (ISS). It is planned to launch on 11 December 2023. It is contracted to Northrop Grumman under the Commercial Resupply Services II (CRS-2) contract with NASA. The capsule is scheduled to be launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

References

  1. 1 2 Navin, Joseph (5 November 2022). "SS Sally Ride Cygnus launches to ISS on NG-18 mission". NASASpaceFlight . Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 Garner, Rob (7 November 2022). "Liftoff of Northrop Grumman's CRS-18 Antares Rocket – NASA's Northrop Grumman CRS-18 Commercial Resup Mission". NASA Blogs. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  3. ↑ Garcia, Mark (21 April 2023). "Robotic Arm Releases Cygnus Space Freighter from Station". blogs.nasa.gov. Retrieved 3 June 2023.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  4. ↑ Gebhardt, Chris (1 June 2018). "Orbital ATK looks ahead to CRS-2 Cygnus flights, Antares on the commercial market". NASASpaceflight.com. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  5. 1 2 Clark, Stephen (1 October 2020). "Northrop Grumman "optimistic" to receive more NASA cargo mission orders". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  6. 1 2 "Cygnus Spacecraft". Northrop Grumman. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  7. ↑ Evans, Ben (23 February 2021). "Northrop Grumman Green-Lights Two More Cygnus Missions, As NG-15 Arrives at Space Station". AmericaSpace. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  8. ↑ Leone, Dan (17 August 2015). "NASA Orders Two More ISS Cargo Missions From Orbital ATK". spacenews.com. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  9. ↑ "NASA Commercial Resupply Mission NG-18". Northrop Grumman. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  10. ↑ Tariq Malik (6 November 2022). "Fire alarm on Earth delays Northrop Grumman cargo launch to space station". Space.com. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  11. ↑ Foust, Jeff (9 November 2022). "Cygnus arrives at space station despite solar array problem". SpaceNews. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
  12. ↑ Foust, Jeff (8 November 2022). "Cygnus solar array fails to deploy". SpaceNews. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  13. ↑ Mike Wall (9 November 2022). "Cygnus cargo ship arrives at space station with only one working solar panel". Space.com. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
  14. ↑ "Overview for Northrop Grumman's 18th Commercial Resupply Mission". NASA. November 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  15. ↑ "ISS Research Program". Glenn Research Center. NASA. 1 January 2020. Retrieved 4 April 2021.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  16. ↑ "Microgravity Research Flights". Glenn Research Center | NASA. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
  17. ↑ "Solid Fuel Ignition and Extinction – Material Ignition and Suppression Test (SoFIE-MIST) | Science Mission Directorate". science.nasa.gov. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
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