Forever Young: The Cygnus NG-10 Leaves Earth to the International Space Station

An Antares rocket launches the NG-10 Cygnus spacecraft in orbit. It is expected that the International Space Station will meet on the morning of November 19, 2018. Photo credit: Sean Costello / SpaceFlight Insider

WALLOPS ISLAND, Virginia – The morning sky on the east coast of the United States was lit by a yellowish fire and a roaring roar, the last rocket Antares carrying the S.S. John Young The supply ship Cygnus tore like a fiery torch in the sky.

Northrop Grumman's NG-10 mission took off at 17:01 EST (09:01 GMT) on November 17, 2018, from the 0A Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) platform of NASA's Wallops flight base in Virginia. The 42.5-meter (139-foot) high Antares rocket carried Cygnus orbit and 3,200 kilograms (7,400 pounds) of water, food, supplies, equipment and experiments, before traveling to the International Space Station (ISS).

A failure of the Antares 230 rocket components that Northrop Grumman had used to send approximately 7,400 pounds of cargo to the International Space Station. Image Credit: David Collins / SpaceFlight Insider

The Cygnus Space Shuttle, named in honor of NASA's oldest astronaut, who died earlier this year, was recently coupled with the Antares rocket in the Horizontal Integration Center (HIF), not far from launch pad 0A.

Following the encapsulation of the spacecraft in the payload fairing of 9.9 meters, the rocket was released from the HIF and towed a short distance to the platform, where it was erected at 0500 EST. (9:00 GMT). 13

The Saturday morning countdown went off almost without problems. In the 90 seconds following the scheduled takeoff, there were discussions in the countdown audio during the launch indicating that several items could not be confirmed by telemetry, but that there was some delay in the countdown. they were "ready" to continue as confirmed by ground sensors, according to mission officials the post-launch press conference.

When the clock reaches zero, the two NPO Energomash RD-181 engines on the first stage of the Antares rocket light up. At that time, the thousands of spectators gathered throughout the coastal area to witness the launch could immediately see flashes of light from the launch pad.

A rather unpleasant storm that persisted off the Atlantic coast delayed the launch twice, before the sky cleared – and cooled, with temperatures reaching 30 ° C – and the mission began.

After 3.7 seconds, both engines, producing a thrust of 864,000 pounds (3,800 kilonewt), took off the rocket and propelled it into the dawn sky.

The vehicle climbed thousands of feet in a straight line from the launch zone, then began to move away from the southeast coast, setting off for the orbital tilt that would allow it to catch up. ISS.

After 3 minutes 30 seconds of flight, the RD-181 engines on the first floor burned more than 40,000 gallons of liquid oxygen and over 21,000 gallons of kerosene (RP-1). The main engines cut off and, six seconds later, the first stage departs and falls, while the second stage of the rocket advances to an altitude of about 105 kilometers.

Sunset at Wallops Flight Facility the day before the launch. Photo credit: Sean Costello / SpaceFlight Insider

Four minutes and 10 seconds after the flight started, the payload fairing separated, exposing the S.S. John Young space. This was followed six seconds later by the separation of the interstage. Seven seconds later, the second stage of the Castor 30XL solid propellant rocket engine ignited at an altitude of about 134 kilometers. The second-stage engine burned for about 2 minutes, 44 seconds, pushing Cygnus higher and faster to orbit.

"The uphill performance of the vehicle" was perfect and powerful, "said Kurt Eberly, Vice President of Northrop Grumman's Antares Program SpaceFlight Insider.

About 7 minutes and 8 seconds after the start of the flight, the second-stage engine completed its operation, placing the spacecraft in a 132-mile (212-kilometer) high orbit. Just over 9 minutes after the launch, the S.S. John Young separated from the second leg and began its orbital pursuit of the ISS for two and a half days.

An illustration of an improved Cygnus spacecraft. Image Credit: David Collins / SpaceFlight Insider

Towards the end of its first orbit (approximately 90 minutes of flight), Cygnus deployed its UltraFlex dual solar circular panels to start powering the spacecraft.

Over the next two days, Cygnus will conduct several engine burns that will align with the space station and bring it to a common targeting reference point (JTRP or "Jay-trip") located 4 km away. under the station. . Once at the JTRP, the Mission Control Team in Houston conducts a "go / no go" survey to allow Cygnus to perform a series of propellant burns that bring them closer to the ISS. This process is repeated four times gradually until the spacecraft reaches a position 12 meters (36 feet) below the station's Unity module.

At this point, Flight Engineer Expedition 57, Serena Aunon-Chancellor, is expected to use the 17.6 meter Canadarm2 to attack the Cygnus and guide him to the port. Unit module, where it will be secured on the docking port.

In the days that follow, the Cygnus will be unloaded from its supplies, equipment and experimental sets. The crew will also unpack a number of CubeSats that will eventually be installed in the NanoRacks deployers onboard the station for later deployment.

the S.S John Young It must remain moored at the ISS until February 2019. In the days and weeks before, the ISS crew will load the cargo compartment of the garbage junk. and unnecessary equipment and will prepare it for his departure.

Cygnus will no longer be connected to the Candadarm2 and its thrusters will be used to separate it at a safe distance from the station. The spacecraft engine will then propel it into a higher orbit where it will launch the NSLSat 1 CubeSat, a mission to correlate solar activity to electron density in the near-Earth plasma field.

The Antares 230 rocket tilts in the early morning sky of Virginia. Photo Credit: Steve Hammer / SpaceFlight Insider

Following the deployment of CubeSats, the S.S. John Young will be desorbed for a destructive comeback over the Pacific Ocean. With its mission completed, the spacecraft allowed for the start and continuation of a wide range of station experiments and operations.

"The Northrop Grumman Tenth Replenishment Mission to the Space Station represents a diverse mix of research that can benefit life on Earth," said Patrick O'Neil, Director of Market Communications for the US International Space Station. SpaceFlight Insider. "More than 10 payloads from this mission are sponsored by the US National Laboratory for the International Space Station, from everything from tissue engineering to in-orbit manufacturing capabilities, to experimentation with the growth of protein crystals and a set of cubic satellites to evaluate our planet. "

Northrop Grumman has named the NG-10 Cygnus space shuttle in honor of astronaut Gemini and Apollo John Young. Image Credit: David Collins / SpaceFlight Insider

Northrop Grumman named the Cygnus satellite of this mission after astronaut John Young, one of the most venerable and most experienced astronauts in NASA's history. Young, an accomplished naval aviator, was chosen as one of the nine astronauts of the second group of NASA astronauts in 1962. His first flight had been with Gus Grissom for the first Gemini mission. Gemini 3. He then flew with Mike Collins on Gemini 10 in 1966, and with Eugene Cernan and Tom Stafford on Apollo 10, the last mission of repetition of the landing on the Moon, in 1969.

Young was lucky enough to walk on the moon as commander of Apollo 16, with lunar module driver Charlie Duke and Ken Commandment pilot Ken Mattingly in 1972. He also commanded the first flight of the space shuttle. Columbia in 1981 with Robert Crippen and made another shuttle mission, STS-9, Columbia again, in 1983.

Young is fondly remembered for his small act of rebellion, when he manages to introduce a salted beef sandwich into his space suit pocket for dinner later in his day. Gemini 3 mission. The incident caused trouble to Young at the time. It is possible that NASA has included corned beef sandwiches for the entire ISS crew in the ship's cargo manifest. S.S. John Young. When asked, NASA was a mother on the subject – but remembered it with tenderness.

"We can not tell if there was a salted beef sandwich on board, but the famous incident shows just how amazing John's sense of humor was," said Carolyn Turner of NASA Wallops.

Young died on January 5, 2018 at the age of 87. Even after retiring from NASA, Young was still attending meetings years later. Northrop Grumman paid tribute to this dedication during this morning's flight.

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Tagged: International Space Station Antares Cygnus Key Stories NASA NG 10 Northrop Grumman Pad-0A S.S. John Young Urgent Flight Center

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Michael Cole

Michael Cole has been a space flight enthusiast ever since and author of some 36 educational books on spaceflight and astronomy for Enslow Publishers. He lives in Findlay, Ohio, not far from Neil Armstrong's birthplace, Wapakoneta. His interest in space and his background in journalism and public relations are ideally suited to his research and development activities at NASA's Glenn Research Center and its test center at Plum Brook, both in the north. East of Ohio. Cole contacted SpaceFlight Insider and asked to join SFI as the first member of the organization's "Glenn Team".