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.

A Japanese H-2A rocket lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center at 0017:46 GMT Thursday (8:17:46 p.m. EDT Wednesday) with the Michibiki 2 navigation satellite designed to improve positioning and timing services over Japan.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon “Resilience” spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket — stretching 215 feet long — are ready for rollout to pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in preparation for the launch of four astronauts Saturday night to the International Space Station.