SpaceX replenishes the ISS. SpaceX launched an unsatisfied cargo dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station early Monday on a supply mission after a calamity of transport derailed the flights of another US freighter. SpaceFlight reports now. The dragon cargo ship docked to the space station early Tuesday, with undischarged payloads in the trunk of the 4,780 pounds (2,168 kilograms) of pressurized cargo and the 1,653 pounds (750 kilograms) vehicle. NASA has adjusted the payload of the Dragon spacecraft as future flights by Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus Supply cargo ships were cancelled after the Cygnus cargo module was damaged during transit to the launch site.
Something strange …Payload this Dragon Cargo Mission– 32nd by SpaceX– Includes normal items such as fresh food (1,262 tortillas exactly), biomedical and pharmaceutical experiments, technical demonstrations of new atomic clocks, and more. But no one wants to talk about NASA or SpaceX. A payload package named STP-H10 will be placed in the Dragon’s trunk section at a mount post outside the space station to carry out missions for the US military’s space testing program. The STP-H10 was not mentioned in NASA’s press kit for this mission, and SpaceX did not display a normal view of the dragon’s trunk when the spacecraft was deployed from the Falcon 9 rocket shortly after its launch. These types of space test program experimental platforms have previously been launched on the ISS without secrets. The Stranger is the fact that the STP-H10 experiment is uncategorized. You can see the list here. (Submitted by Ellpeatea)
Ridesharing has several drawbacks. SpaceX launched its third “Bandwagon” ride-sharing mission into mid-inclation orbit from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Monday evening. Space News reports. The payload included a South Korean military radar spy satellite, a small commercial weather satellite, and the most interesting payload: an experimental re-entry vehicle from a German startup named Atmos Space Cargo. The startup Phoenix vehicle was equipped with an inflatable heat shield separated from the top of the Falcon 9 about 90 minutes after the lift-off, and began re-entering a splashdown in the South Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Brazil about 30 minutes. Until last month, the Phoenix vehicles were to re-enter the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, near Lenion Island. A slower change in the mission trajectory meant that Atmos was unable to recover the spacecraft after Splashdown.
Changes in longitude …Five weeks before its release, SpaceX informed Atmos of trajectory changes due to “operational constraints” on its main payload, a Korean reconnaissance satellite. Small payloads from RideShare launches benefit from lower launch prices, but owners have no control over launch schedules or trajectories. This mission change caused a splashdown off the coast of Brazil, eliminating attempts to recover Phoenix after the splashdown. It also meant a sharper re-entry than previously planned, creating a higher load on the spacecraft. The company lined up new ground stations in South America to communicate with the spacecraft during the flight phase leading up to re-entry. Additionally, they chartered planes trying to collect data while re-entering, but the splashdown locations were beyond the aircraft’s reach. While some data suggests that the heat shield has swelled as planned, Atmos CEO added that it will take more time to analyze the data the company has and that it is “very difficult” to retrieve data from Phoenix at the final stage of the flight, taking into account the distance from the ground station.
