Cygnus successfully berthed at ISS
Despite on of its two solar panels only partly deployed, astronaut Nicole Mann was able to use the robot arm on ISS to grab Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus freighter and bring it into its port, where ground engineers successfully berthed it.
The image to the right is a screen capture from NASA TV as Cygnus approached. You can see the problematic panel at the bottom. Though it has folded out from its initial stored position, it has not opened up fully.
The freighter will stay docked to ISS until late January, during which the crew will unload about four tons of cargo and then fill it with garbage before sending it to burn up over the ocean. We should expect NASA and Northrop Grumman to also plan a spacewalk to not only inspect the panel to figure out what failed, but to see if it can still be deployed.
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Despite on of its two solar panels only partly deployed, astronaut Nicole Mann was able to use the robot arm on ISS to grab Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus freighter and bring it into its port, where ground engineers successfully berthed it.
The image to the right is a screen capture from NASA TV as Cygnus approached. You can see the problematic panel at the bottom. Though it has folded out from its initial stored position, it has not opened up fully.
The freighter will stay docked to ISS until late January, during which the crew will unload about four tons of cargo and then fill it with garbage before sending it to burn up over the ocean. We should expect NASA and Northrop Grumman to also plan a spacewalk to not only inspect the panel to figure out what failed, but to see if it can still be deployed.
Readers!
My annual February birthday fund-raising drive for Behind the Black is now over. Thank you to everyone who donated or subscribed. While not a record-setter, the donations were more than sufficient and slightly above average.
As I have said many times before, I can’t express what it means to me to get such support, especially as no one is required to pay anything to read my work. Thank you all again!
For those readers who like my work here at Behind the Black and haven't contributed so far, please consider donating or subscribing. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
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Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
Curious if there are any contingencies for a spacewalk to evaluate, and possibly fix, the problem. I would be a little surprised if NASA hasn’t at least entertained the idea for these situation. You have crew, you have suits. As this blog has pointed out many times, the primary advantage of people on site is the flexibility to handle unplanned-for events.
Well they did fix one of Skylab’s solar panels back in the 70’s. And they did have someone outside poking the ISS’s panels with a stick a few years back. Perhaps this won’t require quite so much innovations as a tree trimmer on a pole (in the case of Skylab) or a stick. A bit of wiggling and or tugging on the stuck leaf might be all that’s needed to free it.
When can we start building our first Star Base and start work on USS Star Gazer
It occurs that a spacecraft docking at a private station with the same problem, might present an income opportunity.
“Hey, we’ll have a look at it, for [some money]. If we can fix it, that’ll be [more money].
“It was an over-worked, under-powered vessel, always on the verge of flying apart at the seams. In every measurable sense, my Enterprise is far superior. But there are times where I would do almost anything to command the Stargazer again.”
If they are just going to throw the thing away why not make it modular?
That way it can be broke down in space and salvaged. Engines and tanks come off, solar panels come off, The can can then be strapped to the outside of the station and just thrown back to earth later. Or stack two or three cans together and only use one engine assembly to send it back to Earth to burn up.
And why have two solar panels that fold out. Just mount one flat to the side and use more batteries. Seriously just how much power do these things need?