A private cargo spacecraft left the International Space Station this morning (July 12).
Northrop Grumman's Cygnus spacecraft undocked from the International Space Station today at 7:01 a.m. EDT (1101 GMT), while the space station was over the South Atlantic Ocean, ending a 5.5-month orbital stay.
This Cygnus spacecraft — named the SS Patricia “Patty” Hilliard Robertson, after the NASA astronaut who died in a 2001 plane crash — launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Jan. 30. The launch marked the start of the NG-20 mission, so named because it was the 20th Cygnus mission to the International Space Station for NASA.
The spacecraft arrived at the International Space Station two days later, carrying more than 8,200 pounds (3,720 kilograms) of supplies and scientific equipment to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft will carry some scientific equipment on its way to Earth, although it will not reach Earth intact.
Related: Facts about Northrop Grumman's Cygnus cargo ship
After exiting the vehicle, the Kentucky-2 reentry probe experiment (Crepe-2“The Cygnus spacecraft, stored inside the spacecraft, will take measurements to demonstrate a thermal protection system for the spacecraft and its contents during reentry into Earth's atmosphere,” NASA officials wrote in an email. Preview of the International Space Station's departure on Friday.
“The Cygnus spacecraft — filled with junk packed away by the station crew — will be required to deorbit on Saturday, July 13, paving the way for a devastating reentry in which the spacecraft will burn up safely in Earth's atmosphere,” they added.
Cygnus is one of three robotic cargo vehicles currently serving the International Space Station and its astronauts, along with SpaceX's Dragon capsule and Russia's Progress spacecraft.
Like Cygnus, Progress is designed to burn up in the air at the end of its orbital mission. But Dragon is reusable, returning safely to Earth in an ocean splashdown with the help of parachutes.
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