Today’s NASA Social event from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center will set the stage for tomorrow’s launch of the fourth cargo resupply mission by Orbital ATK’s Cygnus spacecraft. A series of speakers will detail different aspects of the mission along with the research and accomplishments of the International Space Station during presentations that will begin at 9 a.m. and run through 10:30 a.m. EST. Although the event will take place at Kennedy, it will also be aired on NASA TV’s Education channel, which you can watch at http://go.nasa.gov/1B8xmT9 or in the streaming window below.
Category: Orbital ATK
Orbital ATK CRS-4 Gets ‘Go’ for Thursday Launch
NASA commercial partner Orbital ATK set Thursday, Dec. 3, for the launch of its fourth contracted mission to the International Space Station under the agency’s Commercial Resupply Services contract. Liftoff is scheduled for 5:55 p.m. EST from Space Launch Complex 41, the beginning of a 30-minute window. NASA confirmed the launch date at the conclusion of Tuesday’s launch readiness review at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. During the meeting, senior NASA, U.S. Air Force, Orbital ATK and United Launch Alliance managers assessed the risks associated with the mission and determined the Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft, United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket and personnel are ready for launch.
Launch coverage on NASA TV and continuous countdown coverage on this NASA Blog will begin at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
In addition to launch coverage, NASA TV will air three briefings Wednesday, Dec. 2: several experts involved in the launch and mission will host an interactive discussion with the agency’s social media followers from 9 to 10:30 a.m.; at 1 p.m., scientists and researchers will discuss some of the investigations to be delivered; at 2 p.m., mission managers will host a prelaunch news conference. A post-launch briefing will be held approximately two hours after launch. All briefings will air live on NASA TV and via streaming video on the blog and on the agency’s website.
Forecast Remains 60 Percent ‘Go’
Forecasters from the Air Force’s 45th Weather Squadron continue to call for a 60 percent chance of favorable weather for liftoff of Orbital ATK CRS-4 on Thursday evening. Launch of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket and Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft – seen here during processing – is targeted for 5:55 p.m. EST from Space Launch Complex 41 in Florida. If the launch does not occur on Dec. 3, the next launch opportunity would be at 5:33 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4.
At 9 a.m. today, officials will hold a Launch Readiness Review at CCAFS and, pending no issues, formalize the launch date.
Launch coverage on NASA Television and on this NASA Blog will begin at 4:30 p.m. A Thursday liftoff will result in the Cygnus spacecraft arriving at the space station on Sunday, Dec. 6. NASA crew members Kjell Lindgren and Scott Kelly will use the station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm to reach out and capture Cygnus at about 5:30 a.m. Photo credit: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis
Forecast: 60 Percent Chance of Acceptable Conditions
The launch day forecast remains at 60 percent “go” for the liftoff of an Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft aboard an Atlas V rocket Thursday at 5:55 p.m. EST. The primary concerns are cumulus clouds, disturbed weather and thick clouds at launch time. Our launch coverage on the NASA Blog and on NASA TV will begin at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
Flying from Space Launch Complex 41, the rocket and spacecraft have a 30-minute window to be able to launch and meet up with the International Space Station in orbit. The Cygnus, an enhanced version carrying more materials than the standard models that flew before, is loaded with more than 7,300 pounds of equipment, supplies and experiments for the station and its crew. Some of the Cygnus payloads will contribute directly to research by astronaut Scott Kelly during his one-year mission on the station. This flight also includes other science cargo include a microsatellite deployer and the first microsatellite to be deployed from the station.
You can read more about the mission here.
OA-4 Coverage and Briefings Next Week
Launch week at Kennedy will be as busy as ever heading toward the Dec. 3 liftoff of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying an Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft stuffed with 7,300 pounds of supplies and equipment for the International Space Station. Launch is scheduled for 5:55 p.m. EST. The launch will be shown live on NASA TV and covered here on the NASA Blog from the launch site beginning at 4:30 p.m.
There are numerous briefings and activities planned leading up to launch. The details can be found here. Here’s a quick look at the briefings on tap for next week, too. All will be shown on NASA TV which can be streamed at www.nasa.gov/ntv:
ISS SCIENCE, RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY PANEL ON NASA TV
Wednesday, Dec. 2: An ISS Science, Research and Technology briefing will be held at Kennedy’s Press Site at 1 p.m. NASA Television will provide live coverage, as well as streaming Internet coverage.
Participants will be:
- Kirt Costello, deputy chief scientist, International Space Station Program Science Office, NASA’s Johnson Space Center
- Ken Shields, director of Operations and Education Outreach, Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS)
- Dr. Brian Motil, principle investigator, Packed Bed Reactor Experiment (PBRE), NASA’s Glenn Research Center, Cleveland
- Talbot Jaeger, chief technology officer, NovaWurks, and principle investigator, Nanoracks-MicroSat-SIMPL (Satlet Initial-Mission Proofs and Lessons)
- Andrew Petro, program executive, Small Spacecraft Technology Program, NASA Headquarters, Washington
- Eleanor McCormack, principal, St. Thomas More Cathedral School, St. Thomas More (STM)Sat-1
PRELAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE ON NASA TV
Wednesday, Dec. 2: A prelaunch status will be held at Kennedy’s Press Site at 2 p.m. NASA Television will provide live coverage, as well as streaming Internet coverage.
Participants will be:
- Kirk Shireman, International Space Station Program manager
- Frank Culbertson, Jr., Space Systems Group president, Orbital ATK
- Vernon Thorpe, program manager for NASA missions, United Launch Alliance
- Todd McNamara, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron
POST-LAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE ON NASA TV
Thursday, Dec. 3: A post-launch news conference will occur at about 8 p.m. and NASA Television will provide live coverage, as well as streaming Internet coverage.
Participants will be:
- Kirk Shireman, International Space Station Program manager
- Frank Culbertson, Jr., Space Systems Group president, Orbital ATK
- Vernon Thorpe, program manager for NASA missions, United Launch Alliance
Cygnus Moved to Launch Pad for Dec. 3 Liftoff
Orbital ATK’s enhanced Cygnus spacecraft was transported to Space Launch Complex 41 early this morning and was lifted to the top of a waiting United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for launch Dec. 3 on a resupply mission to the International Space Station.
Sealed inside a protective payload fairing, the 20.5-foot-long Cygnus left the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at about 3:20 a.m. EST. It arrived at the pad at about 5:30 a.m. A crane at the Vertical Integration Facility at SLC-41 hoisted the spacecraft and fairing into place on the Atlas V with the first phase of the connection complete around 9:30 a.m.
The spacecraft and fairing will be secured in place and a series of tests run to confirm a proper attachment. The enhanced Cygnus, which carries 25 percent more mass than the previous version, has been loaded with more than 7,100 pounds of equipment and supplies that will be used by the space station crew for daily operations and to conduct cutting edge science on the orbiting laboratory. Launch time Dec. 3 is 5:55 p.m. EST to set up a rendezvous with the station Dec. 6. The launch window extends 30 minutes. Photo credits: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis
Cygnus Sealed Inside Fairing
The enhanced Cygnus spacecraft and more than 7,100 pounds of cargo have been enclosed inside a payload fairing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida as processing moves ahead on schedule for a Dec. 3 launch. The Orbital ATK Cygnus will be moved to Space Launch Complex 41 early Friday and lifted to the top of a waiting United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
The spacecraft, which will carry no people, is to lift off aboard the Atlas V to take equipment, experiments and supplies to the International Space Station for use by the residents there including yearlong-crew member astronaut Scott Kelly. Speaking to the news media last week, Orbital ATK’s Dan Tani – a former astronaut who served as a station resident – said a 
new round of cargo always brings excitement: “It’s a real morale boost. It’s like coming home from the store and unpacking the trunk full of the things you bought. A lot of stuff you didn’t know you needed along with a lot of things like notes from home and other items that are really meaningful.”
The enhanced Cygnus can carry about 25 percent more mass than its predecessor and features upgraded Ultraflex solar arrays that unfurl like a fan into a circle and are lighter than the previous models. For NASA, the increased capacity brings the obvious benefit of taking more to the station at once, ranging from daily supplies of food and clothing for the station residents to new experiments so astronauts can continue to use the space-based laboratory to the benefit of all on the Earth. For the astronauts, the new round of cargo brings excitement. Photo credits: top – NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis, below – NASA/ Kim Shiflett.
Cygnus Launch Poised to Bolster Station Science, Supplies
This enhanced Cygnus from Orbital ATK will carry more than 7,000 pounds of equipment, experiments and supplies to the International Space Station. Read much more about the upcoming Dec. 3 flight at http://go.nasa.gov/1PscQmn Photo credits: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis 
Cygnus Starts Final Round of Processing for Station Cargo Delivery
The next U.S. cargo delivery to the International Space Station is steadily progressing toward launch. An Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft is at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida undergoing a final round of prelaunch preparations for its December liftoff aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. This will be Orbital ATK’s fourth commercial resupply flight to the station and will carry more than 7,000 pounds of supplies, equipment and research to keep the station stocked and capable of serving as a platform for studies off the Earth, for the Earth. Read the details of Cygnus processing here. Photo credit: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis
Cygnus Prepped for More Cargo Loading
Engineers are opening the hatch on the Enhanced Cygnus spacecraft and the spacecraft is being rotated to its horizontal position today in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center during preparations for launch December 3 to the International Space Station.
The Orbital ATK-built spacecraft, which will carry more than 7,000 pounds of equipment, experiments and supplies, is being moved and opened so teams can load the last of the gear slated for this resupply mission. The stowage loading will take place Nov. 8 to 10.
Also on Nov. 8, the Delta Mariner will dock at Port Canaveral to deliver the first stage of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket that will lift the Enhanced Cygnus into orbit. The booster stage will be hoisted into the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 on Nov. 11. The latest version of the Cygnus is bigger than its predecessors and can carry 25 percent more supplies on unpiloted missions to the space station. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett