Yesterday, Oct 17, was the first time in almost two years that the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Virginia's Wallop Island was the sight of an Orbital Science's Antares rocket. On top of the rocket was a unmanned Cygnus craft filled with more than 2 and a half ton of supplies destined for the ISS (International Space Station). The mission would first for Orbital Science since the October 2014 explosion of an Antares rocket shortly after lift-off.
At 7:45 pm ET (4:45 pm PT) the ground
crew on Wallop Island and those watching the live feed were thrilled
at the sight of the engines roaring to life. There was cheering as
the rocket lifted-off and started its accent. Within seconds much of
the northern half of the east coast was able to witness the sight of
the rocket as it soared
into the stratosphere.
A few minutes after launch the Antares
rocket broke into a low Earth orbit where it would separate with the
Cygnus craft that would continue on its mission to the ISS. It will
take 5 and a days for the Cygnus craft to rendezvous with the ISS
where it will then be captured by the stations robotic grappling arm
and brought in to dock. Then over the next few weeks the crew of the
ISS will unload the 5,000+ pounds of supplies. Once the craft has
been unloaded it will then be filled back up with 3,000 pounds of
trash before it is released to fall back to Earth.
No comments:
Post a Comment