AV-064 – Spaceflight Now

Atlas 5 rocket gains approval to launch again after issue on last flight diagnosed

June 16, 2016 Justin Ray

United Launch Alliance has granted “flight clearance” for its workhorse Atlas 5 rocket to resume satellite deployments after linking an errant valve with the fuel usage crunch on its most recent mission and tweaking subsequent vehicles.

Cygnus leaves space station and conducts NASA fire experiment in microgravity

June 14, 2016 Justin Ray

Bidding farewell to the International Space Station today, the commercial Cygnus cargo ship separated to a safe distance before igniting an intentional fire in microgravity like never before, all in the name of science.

Live video: Cygnus freighter to depart the space station Tuesday

June 14, 2016 Justin Ray

Concluding 80 days attached the International Space Station, the commercial Cygnus cargo ship will be detached to fly away Tuesday for an unprecedented onboard fire experiment before re-entering the atmosphere next week.

New lineup spelled out for upcoming Atlas 5 rocket launches from the Cape

May 3, 2016 Justin Ray

The revised Atlas 5 rocket firing order includes two national security missions this summer before launching NASA’s daring asteroid sampler mission in September as originally planned.

Mixture ratio valve the culprit in Atlas 5 anomaly, next launch this summer

April 29, 2016 Justin Ray

With the performance hit on the Atlas 5 rocket’s most recent flight last month now isolated to a faulty valve, preparations to resume the manifest are underway as United Launch Alliance workers stack the next booster for blastoff this summer.

New target date for next Atlas 5 launch

April 12, 2016 Justin Ray

As the internal investigation continues into the first stage performance trouble on the last Atlas 5 rocket launch, the next mission on the manifest has slipped to May 27.

United Launch Alliance narrowing lists of suspects in rocket anomaly

March 31, 2016 Justin Ray

The detective work into the Atlas 5 rocket’s first stage performance trouble during the Cygnus cargo ship launch a week ago has implicated the fuel system as the likely culprit for using up the liquid oxygen supply too quickly.

Photos: Cygnus goes from Cape Canaveral to the space station

March 26, 2016 Justin Ray

This collection of official NASA photographs captures the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket rolling to the pad on Monday, successfully blasting off Tuesday and the Cygnus freighter arriving at the International Space Station on Saturday morning.

Traveling Cygnus pulls into port at International Space Station

March 26, 2016 Justin Ray

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station used the robotic arm to snare a commercial cargo ship and bring it aboard this morning while traveling at five miles per second.

Video: Cygnus freighter arrives at orbital destination

March 26, 2016 Justin Ray

The International Space Station crew reaches out with the Canadian robotic arm and grabs the Cygnus OA-6 commercial cargo ship filled with 7,485 pounds of supplies, food and science gear.