NASA – Page 36 – Spaceflight Now

JWST completes tests to simulate rigors of launch

October 7, 2020 Stephen Clark

The fully-assembled James Webb Space Telescope has completed testing in Southern California to verify the $10 billion mission can withstand the sound and shaking it will see during launch scheduled late next year on a European Ariane 5 rocket.

Commander of first piloted Starliner test flight steps down from mission

October 7, 2020 William Harwood

Christopher Ferguson, commander of the final space shuttle flight and now a Boeing executive, has stepped down as commander of the first piloted test flight of the company’s troubled CST-100 Starliner commercial spacecraft, he and Boeing announced Wednesday. He has been replaced by NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore.

Search continues for small air leak on space station

October 5, 2020 Stephen Clark

Crew members on the International Space Station over the weekend continued trying to pinpoint the location of a small air leak in the research outpost’s Russian Zvezda service module, one of the oldest sections of the orbiting laboratory.

Cygnus supply ship reaches space station with titanium toilet

October 5, 2020 Stephen Clark

A Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo ship arrived at the International Space Station on Monday, delivering nearly four tons of supplies and experiments to the research lab and its crew, including a $23 million titanium toilet and a high-definition virtual reality camera planned for use on a future spacewalk.

Antares rocket takes aim on space station with zero-gravity toilet, other supplies

October 3, 2020 Stephen Clark

A Northrop Grumman Cygnus supply ship rocketed into orbit from Virginia Friday night on an Antares launcher, taking aim on the International Space Station with an advanced $23 million zero-gravity titanium toilet and several tons of other gear.

Launch of Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket scrubbed in Virginia

October 2, 2020 Stephen Clark

Northrop Grumman called off the launch of an Antares rocket and a Cygnus space station cargo freighter Thursday night on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, the third aborted countdown in less than 24 hours for three different U.S. rockets.

Antares launch timeline on the NG-14 mission

October 1, 2020 Stephen Clark

Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket will deliver a Cygnus supply ship into orbit Thursday to begin a pursuit of the International Space Station.

Live coverage: Cygnus supply ship arrives at International Space Station

October 1, 2020 Stephen Clark

A Northrop Grumman Cygnus supply ship packed with fresh food, experiments, and a new toilet for the International Space Station approached the orbiting research lab Monday, two-and-a-half days after launching from Virginia aboard an Antares rocket. Capture of Cygnus with the station’s robotic arm occurred at 5:32 a.m. EDT (0932 GMT).

Northrop Grumman “optimistic” to receive more NASA cargo mission orders

October 1, 2020 Stephen Clark

On the cusp of the company’s next Cygnus resupply flight to the International Space Station set for launch Thursday night from Virginia, Northrop Grumman officials said they are eager for NASA to approve more Cygnus cargo missions beyond those already on contract through 2022.

NASA selects SpaceX to launch mission studying interstellar space

September 28, 2020 Stephen Clark

NASA has awarded SpaceX a $109 million contract to launch the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe, a NOAA space weather observatory, a robotic scout to map water on the moon, and two other ridealong payloads on a single Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral in 2024.