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Cygnus CRS OA-6
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. The Cygnus spacecraft for this mission is named the S.S. ''Rick Husband'' in honor of astronaut Rick Husband. History The first COTS demonstration mission with a Cygnus concluded successfully in September 2013 and Orbital commenced operational ISS cargo missions under the Commercial Resupply Service (CRS) program with two missions in 2014. However, the third operational mission, Cygnus Orb-3, was unsuccessful due to catastrophic failure of its Antares 130 launch vehicle. Orbital discontinued the Antares 100 series in favor of the planned Antares 200, upgraded with newly built RD-181 first stage engines to provide greater payload performance and increased reliability. While the Antares 20 ...
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Canadarm2
The Mobile Servicing System (MSS) is a robotic system on board the International Space Station (ISS). Launched to the ISS in 2001, it plays a key role in station assembly and maintenance; it moves equipment and supplies around the station, supports astronauts working in space, services instruments and other payloads attached to the ISS, and is used for external maintenance. Astronauts receive specialized training to perform these functions with the various systems of the MSS. The MSS is composed of three components: * the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS), known as Canadarm2. * the Mobile Remote Servicer Base System (MBS). * the Dextre, Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM, also known as "Dextre" or "Canada hand"). The system can move along rails on the Integrated Truss Structure on top of the US-provided Mobile Transporter cart, which hosts the MRS Base System. The system's control software was written in the Ada (programming language), Ada 95 programming ...
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SpaceX CRS-8
Space Exploration Technologies Corp., commonly referred to as SpaceX, is an American space technology company headquartered at the Starbase development site in Starbase, Texas. Since its founding in 2002, the company has made numerous advancements in rocket propulsion, reusable launch vehicles, human spaceflight and satellite constellation technology. , SpaceX is the world's dominant space launch provider, its launch cadence eclipsing all others, including private competitors and national programs like the Chinese space program. SpaceX, NASA, and the United States Armed Forces work closely together by means of governmental contracts. SpaceX was founded by Elon Musk in 2002 with a vision of decreasing the costs of space launches, paving the way to a sustainable colony on Mars. In 2008, Falcon 1 successfully launched into orbit after three failed launch attempts. The company then pivoted towards the development of the larger Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon 1 capsule to ...
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Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and has Mexico-United States border, an international border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua (state), Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south and southwest. Texas has Texas Gulf Coast, a coastline on the Gulf of Mexico to the southeast. Covering and with over 31 million residents as of 2024, it is the second-largest state List of U.S. states and territories by area, by area and List of U.S. states and territories by population, population. Texas is nicknamed the ''Lone Star State'' for its former status as the independent Republic of Texas. Spain was the first European country to Spanish Texas, claim and control Texas. Following French colonization of Texas, a short-lived colony controlled by France, Mexico ...
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Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of Harris County, Texas, Harris County, as well as the principal city of the Greater Houston metropolitan area, the fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical area in the United States and the List of Texas metropolitan areas, second-most populous in Texas after Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Dallas–Fort Worth. With a population of 2,314,157 in 2023, Houston is the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most populous city in the United States after New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, and the List of North American cities by population, sixth-most populous city in North America. Houston is the southeast anchor of the greater megaregion known as the Texas Triangle. Comprising a land area of , Houston is the List of United S ...
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Dulles, Virginia
Dulles ( ) is an unincorporated area in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States, and is part of the Washington metropolitan area. The headquarters of Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems and ODIN Technologies, as well as the former headquarters of MCI Inc. and AOL are located in Dulles. The National Weather Service Baltimore/Washington forecast office and the National Weather Service's Sterling Field Support Center are also both in Dulles. Geography Dulles covers roughly the southwestern third of Sterling, Virginia (another unincorporated community). The usage of Dulles as a community name began in the mid-1980s when Loudoun County economic development officer Pam Treadwell successfully lobbied the United States Postal Service to allow Sterling businesses and residents to use Dulles as an alternative address. The USPS defines Dulles as an "acceptable" city name for the 20166 ZIP code, whose "recommended" city name is Sterling. Dulles is also the city name for ZIP code 20189. ...
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Cygnus CRS OA-7
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. The Cygnus OA-7 is named the S.S. ''John Glenn'' in honor of astronaut and senator John Glenn, the first U.S. astronaut to orbit the Earth on Mercury-Atlas 6 and the oldest to go to space on STS-95, until 2021. History The COTS demonstration ...
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Cygnus CRS OA-5
OA-5, previously known as Orbital-5, was the seventh planned flight of the Orbital Sciences Corporation, Orbital Sciences' uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus (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 Coordinated Universal Time, 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. The Cygnus spacecraft for this mission is named the S.S. ''Alan Poindexter'' in honor to astronaut Alan G. Poindexter, a deceased Space Shuttle commander. Poindexter w ...
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RD-180
The RD-180 () is a rocket engine that was designed and built in Russia. It features a dual combustion chamber, dual-nozzle design and is fueled by a RP-1/ LOX mixture. The RD-180 is derived from the RD-170 line of rocket engines, which were used in the Soviet Energia launch vehicle. The engine was developed for use on the US Atlas III and Atlas V launch vehicles and first flew in 2000. It was never used on any other rocket. The engine has flown successfully on all six Atlas III flights and on 99 Atlas V flights, with just a single non-critical failure in March 2016. Atlas V is being phased out due to the national security implications of reliance on the Russian-built engine, which became a concern after the Russian annexation of Crimea. In 2021, Atlas manufacturer United Launch Alliance announced that it was retiring the Atlas V and that it had already taken delivery of the RD-180 engines for the remaining rockets. , 16 launches remain. In 2022, Russian supplies and maintena ...
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Antares (rocket)
Antares (), known during early development as Taurus II, is an American expendable medium-lift launch vehicle developed and built by Orbital Sciences Corporation (later Orbital ATK and Northrop Grumman) with financial support from NASA under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program awarded in February 2008, alongside the company's automated cargo spacecraft, Cygnus. Like other launch vehicles developed by Orbital, Antares leveraged lower-cost, off-the-shelf parts and designs. The first stage is liquid fueled, burning RP-1 (kerosene) and liquid oxygen (LOX). Due to Orbital's limited experience with large liquid stages, the construction was subcontracted to the Ukrainian companies Pivdenne and Pivdenmash. Initially, the Antares 100 series used refurbished NK-33 engines, remnants of the Soviet N1 moon rocket. However, after a catastrophic explosion, the Antares 200 series transitioned to newly built Russian RD-191 engines. Following Russia's in ...
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Cygnus Orb-3
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. Spacecraft This would have been the third of eight flights by Orbital Sciences under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-1) contract with NASA. This was the first attempted flight of the Antares 130, which uses a more powerful Castor 30XL second stage, and the last flight of the standard-sized Cygnus Pressurized Cargo Module. In an Orbital Sciences tradition, this Cygnus spacecraft was named S.S. ''Deke Slayton'' after one of NASA's original Mercury Seven astronauts and Director of Flight Operations, who died in 1993. As the launch failed, the ...
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Rick Husband
Richard Douglas Husband (July 12, 1957 – February 1, 2003) was an American astronaut and fighter pilot. He traveled into space twice: as pilot of STS-96 and commander of STS-107. Husband and the rest of the crew of STS-107 were killed when ''Columbia'' disintegrated during reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. He is also a recipient of the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. Early life, education and training Husband was born on July 12, 1957, in Amarillo, Texas. At age 17, he earned his pilot's license while flying out of Tradewind Airport. Husband graduated with honors from Amarillo High School in 1975. Husband earned a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Texas Tech University in 1980 after five years of study. He earned his Master of Science degree from Fresno State University. Upon graduation, Husband was commissioned as a pilot in the United States Air Force, having been enrolled in ROTC his last two years of college. Husband underwent pilo ...
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NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States's civil list of government space agencies, space program, aeronautics research and outer space, space research. National Aeronautics and Space Act, Established in 1958, it succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) to give the American space development effort a distinct civilian orientation, emphasizing peaceful applications in space science. It has since led most of America's space exploration programs, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, the 1968–1972 Apollo program missions, the Skylab space station, and the Space Shuttle. Currently, NASA supports the International Space Station (ISS) along with the Commercial Crew Program and oversees the development of the Orion (spacecraft), Orion spacecraft and the Sp ...
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