NASA and SpaceX are targeting 8:44 p.m. EDT Thursday, July 14, to launch the agency's next investigation to monitor climate change to the International Space Station. The mission, NASA's Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT), will fly aboard SpaceX's 25th commercial resupply services mission to the orbital laboratory.
SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft will lift off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to deliver new science investigations, supplies, and equipment for the international crew, including a new climate research investigation.
Live coverage will air on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency's website, with prelaunch events starting Wednesday, July 13.
Dragon will carry more than 5,800 pounds of cargo, including a variety of NASA investigations like EMIT, which will identify the composition of mineral dust from Earth's arid regions and analyze dust carried through the atmosphere from deserts to see what effects it has on the planet, further advancing NASA's data contributions to monitoring climate change.
Other investigations include studying the aging of immune cells and the potential to reverse those effects during postflight recovery, a CubeSat that will monitor cloud top and ocean surface temperatures which could help scientists understand Earth's climate and weather systems, and a student experiment testing a concrete alternative for potential use in future lunar and Martian habitats.
Arrival to the station is scheduled for approximately 11:20 a.m. EDT on Saturday, July 16. Dragon will dock autonomously to the forward-facing port of the station's Harmony module, with NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Bob Hines monitoring operations from the station.
The spacecraft is expected to spend about a month attached to the orbiting outpost before it returns to Earth with research and return cargo, splashing down off the coast of Florida.
Related Links
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Northrop Grumman's Cygnus reboosts Space Station
Dulles VA (SPX) Jun 28, 2022
Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE: NOC) Cygnus cargo spacecraft successfully boosted the orbit of the International Space Station (ISS). Docked to the ISS since February, Cygnus fired its main onboard engine to adjust the orbit of the station to the desired altitude to support upcoming operations. The station orbits approximately 250 miles above earth and requires a periodic reboost. The successful operation incorporated lessons learned from an earlier reboost attempt that was suspended as a pr ... read more