Japan will replenish the crew of the international space station with a cargo flight: Global: Business Times

The International Space Station (ISS) is about to receive supplies to replenish existing stocks. A robotic Japanese supply ship launched from Earth, bringing these supplies, chasing the space station until it enters a similar orbit.

The freighter, designated HTV-7, took off from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. He was carried by an H-II rocket. Its cargo of 5 tons consisted of various supplies such as food and fuel and other integral items such as scientific articles, among other important cargoes. "HTV", according to Space, means "H-II transfer vehicle". The cargo ship was scheduled to launch earlier in September, but because of Typhoon Mangkhut, it was moved at a later date.

The freighter, meanwhile, is designated Kounotori- "white stork" in Japanese. HTV-7 is the seventh cargo mission, dating from September 2009. The sixth mission of the series, HTV-6, did not complete its service until 2016.

A description of the mission is available on NASA. The HTV-7 is expected to dock at the space station, where Expedition Commander Drew Feustel and NASA Flight Engineer Serena Aunon-Chancellor will help unload the cargo. The robotic arm of Canadarm2 will help the spacecraft to dock at the station. Flight engineer Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency) will monitor HTV-7 systems.

To complete the list of cargoes, Kounotori is offering six new lithium-ion batteries, adapter plates to replace the aging nickel-hydrogen batteries of the space station. These batteries are part of the ISS power supply system. It will be a sight to behold when astronauts perform a battery exchange through two spacewalks and robotic operations.

HTV-7 also includes a re-entry capsule, which researchers will use to transport payloads to their homes. The capsule is cone shaped and designed by JAXA. It is 2 feet tall. It is an experimental technology designed to return small scientific payloads through unmanned insertion of space to Earth. The capsule will descend to land off the coast of Japan, where a JAXA ship will be waiting.

There are other payloads that the HTV-7 brings, such as the Electrostatic Levitation oven (JAXA-ELF) sample holder, as well as other scientific articles. He will return to the earth's atmosphere thanks to a harmless maneuver, where he will try to desorb and burn safely during his return.