Northrop Grumman - Cygnus NG-18 Resupply Mission patch.
Nov. 8, 2022
Artist's view of Cygnus cargo spacecraft during the approach of ISS
The Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo spacecraft has successfully deployed one of its two solar arrays and completed four rendezvous burns on its way to the International Space Station. To remain focused on the spacecraft’s arrival at the station, Northrop Grumman and NASA made the determination not to deploy the second solar array after initial attempts to deploy it were unsuccessful. The Cygnus team is gathering information on why the second array did not deploy as planned. Cygnus has sufficient power to rendezvous with the space station Wednesday, Nov. 9. Northrop Grumman is working closely with NASA to monitor and assess the spacecraft ahead of tomorrow’s planned arrival, capture, and installation at the space station. Mission teams also are planning additional inspections of the cargo spacecraft during approach and after capture.
Cygnus cargo spacecraft capture and berthing
NASA TV coverage of rendezvous and capture will begin at 3:30 a.m. EST followed by installation coverage at 7:15 a.m. At about 5:05 a.m., Expedition 68 NASA astronaut Nicole Mann will capture Cygnus with the station’s robotic arm, with NASA astronaut Josh Cassada acting as backup. After Cygnus capture, ground commands will be sent from mission control at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for the station’s arm to rotate and install it on the station’s Unity module Earth-facing port.
Related articles:
One Cygnus Solar Array Deployed So Far
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/11/one-cygnus-solar-array-deployed-so-far.html
NASA Science, Cargo Launches on Northrop Grumman Resupply Mission
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/11/nasa-science-cargo-launches-on-northrop.html
Northrop Grumman Cargo Launch Postponed, Next Attempt Nov. 7
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/11/northrop-grumman-cargo-launch-postponed.html
L-72 Hour Forecast: 80% Favorable Weather for Sun. Launch
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/11/l-72-hour-forecast-80-favorable-weather.html
Resupply Mission for NASA Carries Scientific Experiments to Space Station
https://orbiterchspacenews.blogspot.com/2022/10/resupply-mission-for-nasa-carries.html
Related links:
NASA TV: https://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/index.html
International Space Station (ISS): https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
Learn more about Northrop Grumman’s mission at: https://www.nasa.gov/northropgrumman/
Image, Animation, Text, Credits: NASA/Heidi Lavelle.
Best regards, Orbiter.ch
