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Cygnus OA-9 will remain in low Earth orbit for the next two weeks to deploy six small satellites called cubesats using the external CubeSat Deployer NanoRacks.
International Space Station Orbiting the Earth (Representation Photo) | Photo Credit: & nbspThinkstock
Washington: A Cygnus cargo ship left the International Space Station (ISS), after increasing the station's height to about 86 meters, the media has reported. The unmanned spaceship Cygnus OA-9, also known as "SSJR Thompson," left the ISS at 8:37 am EDT (12:37 GMT) on July 15, Space.com reported on Sunday. Before starting its journey to Earth, the Cygnus – built and launched by Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems (NGIS) – provided orbital thrust to the ISS using its powerful Delta-V engine, the report notes.
Cygnus was still moored to the Space Station's Unity module on July 10, the spacecraft fired its main engine for 50 seconds as part of a test to determine if the cargo ship could be used to enhance the Orbit of the space station. Frank DeMauro, Vice President He was quoted as saying to Space.com
On average, the ISS revolves around the Earth at an altitude of about 248 miles (400 km). A small amount of atmospheric drag causes it to slow down, lowering its altitude by about 1.2 miles (2 km) per month. The ISS already has a way to strengthen its own orbit using embedded propellers, but "currently, all orbit is lifted by the Russian side of the space station", said DeMauro.
When the Cygnus boosted the station's orbit on July 10, it became the first US spacecraft to raise the ISS's orbit since space shuttles retired in 2011, says the report. Stimulating the altitude of the ISS not only prevents it from falling into space, but can also be used to help the space station to stay away from debris orbital.
The Cygnus OA-9 spacecraft took off May 21 from an Antares rocket from the NASA Wallops Flight Facility in Wallops Island, Virginia. He arrived at the ISS on May 24 with 7,385 kg (3,385 kg) of scientific experiments, food, clothing, equipment and other supplies for the crew of six people from Expedition 55.
Currently, Cygnus OA-9 will remain low Earth's orbit for the next two weeks to deploy six small satellites called cubesats using the external CubeSat Deployer NanoRacks. After that, it will desorb and fall to Earth, burning in the atmosphere somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, according to the report.
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