Orbital Sciences has set May 6 as the launch date for its next Cygnus cargo mission to ISS.
Orbital Sciences has set May 6 as the launch date for its next Cygnus cargo mission to ISS.
Tag: Orbital Sciences
Cygnus has departed ISS after successfully bring its cargo to the station.
Cygnus has departed ISS after successfully bring its cargo to the station.
Orbital Sciences’ balance sheets booming as a result of commercial space.
Orbital Sciences’ balance sheets booming as a result of commercial space.
“Orbital’s fourth quarter financial results reflected solid growth in revenues, earnings per share and free cash flow, and capped a very successful year in 2013,” noted Mr. David W. Thompson, Orbital’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. This highly successful report reflects the successes Orbital have enjoyed during the last year. The most publicly recognized successes have involved the opening launches of their new Antares launch vehicle, two of which lofted the first Cygnus spacecraft on their missions to the ISS.
Orbital Sciences outlines the upgrades it plans for Cygnus and Antares.
Orbital Sciences outlines the upgrades it plans for Cygnus and Antares.
Replacing Antares’ Russian engines is their biggest problem, but along the way they are installing a number of improvements to Cygnus that will up its cargo capacity.
Cygnus was successfully berthed to ISS today.
Cygnus was successfully berthed to ISS today.
This is the first operational station resupply mission carried out by Orbital Sciences under a $1.9 billion contract with NASA calling for at least eight flights and delivery of 40,000 pounds of cargo and supplies.
The Cygnus captured Sunday will remain attached to the space station until mid February. At that point SpaceX will step up with launch of a Dragon cargo ship around Feb. 22. It will be the third operational resupply flight by SpaceX, which holds a $1.6 billion contract to deliver more than 44,000 pounds of supplies over a dozen missions.
Orbital Sciences has successfully launched its Cygnus cargo ferry into orbit.
Orbital Sciences has successfully launched its Cygnus cargo ferry into orbit.
Another perfect launch for the company.
Consider once again what has happened. While it cost NASA six years and $9 billion to build nothing before its Constellation program was cancelled, two private companies have built and launched two different rockets and unmanned cargo spacecraft in that same time period for about a third of that cost.
The contrast couldn’t be more stark. And that contrast will get even more stark as the flights of the privately built manned spacecraft by SpaceX, Boeing, and Sierra Nevada unfold in the coming three years, while SLS and Orion sit around and do little but spend money.
Orbital Sciences now plans to launch Cygnus on Thursday.
Orbital Sciences now plans to launch Cygnus on Thursday.
Orbital Sciences has scrubbed today’s launch of Cygnus due to the major solar flare that occurred yesterday.
Orbital Sciences has scrubbed today’s launch of Cygnus due to the major solar flare that occurred yesterday.
“Early this morning the Antares launch team decided to scrub today’s launch attempt due to an unusually high level of space radiation that exceeded by a considerable margin the constraints imposed on the mission to ensure the rocket’s electronic systems are not impacted by a harsh radiation environment,” Orbital Sciences officials said in a statement today.
NASA and Orbital Sciences have rescheduled the Cygnus freighter launch to ISS until January 8 because of cold weather.
NASA and Orbital Sciences have rescheduled the Cygnus freighter launch to ISS until January 8 because of cold weather.
NASA and Orbital Sciences have set January 7 as the launch date for the Cygnus cargo mission to ISS.
NASA and Orbital Sciences have set January 7 as the launch date for the Cygnus cargo mission to ISS.
They did some rescheduling at Wallops Island to allow the Cygnus launch to happen earlier.
NASA engineers have decided to go ahead with a series of spacewalks to repair the ISS cooling system, thereby delaying the Cygnus cargo mission until January.
NASA engineers have decided to go ahead with a series of spacewalks to repair the ISS cooling system, thereby delaying the Cygnus cargo mission until January.
The EVAs will take place on December 21, 23 and 25 followed by a Russian Spacewalk on the 27th and a Beta-Angle Cut-out beginning on December 29. That means that the earliest launch opportunity for Cygnus is January 9, 2014 (local time) – pending the successful execution of the contingency EVAs.
Update: The Orbital Sciences press announcement says their launch can happen no earlier than January 13.
The Cygnus cargo mission to ISS has been delayed by at least one day as NASA managers struggle to deal with the station’s coolant pump failure.
The Cygnus cargo mission to ISS has been delayed by at least one day as NASA managers struggle to deal with the station’s coolant pump failure.
As noted in earlier reports, it appears they are considering a series of spacewalks to try to fix the problem.
Orbital Sciences, having delayed the launch of its first operational Cygnus cargo mission to ISS by one day, has named the spacecraft after the late astronaut Gordon Fullerton.
Orbital Sciences, having delayed the launch of its first operational Cygnus cargo mission to ISS by one day, has named the spacecraft after the late astronaut Gordon Fullerton.
An Orbital Sciences’ Minotaur rocket tonight launched a record 29 satellites into orbit, 28 of which were cubesats.
An Orbital Sciences’ Minotaur rocket tonight launched a record 29 satellites into orbit, 28 of which were cubesats.
More here.
The first satellite designed and built by high school students is about to go into space.
The first satellite designed and built by high school students is about to go into space.
The first Cygnus capsule has been de-orbited, burning up in the atmosphere.
The first Cygnus capsule has been de-orbited, burning up in the atmosphere.
A 100% success. The U.S. now has two different ways to get cargo to low Earth orbit. Soon, if all goes as it should, we shall have multiple ways to put humans there as well.
Cygnus has undocked from ISS and will be de-orbited tomorrow.
Cygnus has undocked from ISS and will be de-orbited tomorrow.
Want a rocket to launch your satellite into orbit. Orbital Sciences has one.
Want a rocket to launch your satellite into orbit. Orbital Sciences has one.
The article essentially outlines the marketing push Orbital is doing to get additional commercial contracts for its Antares rocket.
Cygnus will be de-orbited one day early, on October 23.
Cygnus will be de-orbited one day early, on October 23.
At the same time, preparations move forward for the second Cygnus flight in December, which will be the first operational flight. This quote is interesting:
Neither Orbital nor the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority got locked out of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport as a result of the shutdown, meaning that preparations for the tentative December launch continued while more than 95 percent of NASA’s roughly 18,000 civil servants were on furlough.
Suggests again how unessential a good percentage of NASA’s employees really are. They might be great engineers, but they are apparently wasting their talents at NASA doing unnecessary make-work.
Except for a troublesome fan, the first Cygnus cargo capsule to dock with ISS is performing perfectly.
Except for a troublesome fan, the first Cygnus cargo capsule to dock with ISS is performing perfectly.
The fan has been a minor issue. The astronauts have simply turned it off periodically when it started to act up. What is really important is this:
The next Cygnus – along with its Antares launch vehicle – is already being processed at Orbital’s Wallops facility, with a target launch date of December 15, with an available launch window through to December 21.