SpaceX to send tons of scientific data to the ISS aboard its new Dragon 2 spacecraft

A new version of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will make its first flight into orbit this weekend when a Falcon 9 rocket lifts a Dragon 2 filled with supplies to the International Space Station.

The new Dragon can carry 50% more science payloads compared to the previous version, according to SpaceX. The launch is the 21st for Elon Musk’s rocket company under its Commercial Replenishment Services (CRS) contract with NASA.

In addition to supplies for the astronauts and the station, CRS-21 will bring several experiments to the ISS, including the first research experience on the drug COVID-19 in the space. A number of biological investigations will take advantage of technologies such as tissue-on-a-chip and brain organoids, which can be used to simulate human tissues and record their response to microgravity.

Another experiment on board is Bioasteroid, which aims to help determine if organisms such as fungi could be used to help extract valuable substances such as rare earth metals from asteroids to extract them or even maintain bases on d ‘other worlds.

“We’re going to see if these microbes can get things we’d really like to use in industry from the surface and inside of asteroids,” says Charles Cockell, principal investigator for Bioasteroid, in the NASA video shown here. below.

A new airlock module from Nanoracks also flies on the Dragon, similar to a Japanese airlock already on the ISS, but significantly larger. The new infrastructure could allow cubesats or other payloads to be deployed into space from the space station.

The Falcon 9 booster lifting the Dragon 2 will make its fourth flight and land on a dronehip in the Atlantic several minutes after take off. The Dragon will dock with the ISS approximately 24 hours after launch.

The launch is currently scheduled for 8:39 a.m. PT (11:39 a.m.ET) on Saturday, December 5 from Cape Canaveral, Florida. However, the latest forecast shows that only a 50% chance that the weather conditions will allow it to move forward. The forecast for the Sunday backup launch window is a bit more favorable.

Every time the mission kicks off, we’ll be sure to integrate the livestream for you to watch here.