SpaceX to Send Cargo Ship on Sixth ISS Supply Mission on Monday

Advertisement
By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 13 April 2015 10:06 IST
SpaceX is sending its unmanned Dragon cargo ship on its sixth official supply mission to the International Space Station on Monday, should the weather behave itself.

The US space transport company will also seek to recycle the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket by landing it on an ocean platform soon after launch, set to take place from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 4:33 pm (2033 GMT).

The latest weather forecast is for a 60 percent chance of favorable conditions at liftoff time. If it does not launch Monday, the next chance will be Tuesday at 2010 GMT.

After the launch, SpaceX will make another attempt to guide the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket back to a controlled landing on an ocean platform, part of the California-based company's goal of making rockets one day as reusable as planes.

Advertisement

In January, the rocket attempted a controlled maneuver to land on a barge in the Atlantic, but collided with it instead and broke into pieces.

Advertisement

Since Nasa retired its Space Shuttle, Russia's Soyuz is the only spacecraft that can ferry astronauts to and from the orbiting International Space Station. Private company Space X's Dragon is the only re-entry cargo craft.

Boeing and SpaceX are developing reusable astronaut carriers for Nasa, which is also working on the Orion craft it hopes will take humans to Mars.

Advertisement

If all goes well, Dragon will make it to the ISS Wednesday. It should be guided into the station by European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti.

SpaceX officials are feeling upbeat because of some technical improvements to help in the event of strong winds, and the positive weather outlook.

Advertisement

"I guess together the improvements of the vehicle, the first stage of Falcon 9 and the improvements of the drone ship, I will up my probabilities (of success) to 75 percent, maybe 80 percent at this point in time," Hans Koenigsmann, vice president and chief engineer at SpaceX, told reporters.

The ISS crew can't step out for groceries so Dragon is bringing a two-tonne order of food and water from Nasa, and even an espresso machine. There are also materials for future research on the effects of weightlessness.

After a five-week stay docked with the ISS, Dragon will leave the station and head home to Earth loaded with no longer needed scientific equipment, garbage and other items.

This marks SpaceX's sixth ISS supply mission for Nasa out of a total of 12, under a $1.6 billion contract.

 

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.

Further reading: ISS, Nasa, SpaceX
Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. How to Watch Samsung's Galaxy Event Livestream Today and What to Expect
  2. Motorola Edge 60 Neo Key Specifications Tipped Ahead of Imminent Launch
  3. Tecno Pova Slim 5G India Launch Today: All You Need to Know
  4. Jio Announces Rs. 349 Celebration Plan With Free Vouchers Worth Rs. 3,000
  5. Samsung Galaxy S25 FE Accessories Leaked Ahead of September 4 Launch
  1. Jio Announces Rs. 349 Celebration Plan With Free JioHotstar, Zomato Gold, and More Vouchers to Mark 9th Anniversary
  2. Samsung Galaxy Unpacked Event Today: How to Watch the Galaxy Event Livestream and What to Expect
  3. Tecno Pova Slim 5G Launching Today: Know Price in India, Features, Specifications and More
  4. Scientists Create Stretchy Rubber That Converts Body Heat Into Electricity for Wearables
  5. NASA’s InSight Reveals Ancient Planetary Remains Preserved Deep Inside Mars
  6. Rajinikanth’s Coolie is Coming to OTT Platforms Soon: Know When, Where to Watch it Online
  7. NASA’s Juno Spacecraft Detects Callisto’s Aurora, Completing Jupiter’s Galilean Moons Set
  8. Kalyani Priyadarshan’s Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra OTT Release Date Revealed
  9. Astronomers Discover Calvera, a Runaway Pulsar Racing Above the Milky Way
  10. Itel A90 Limited Edition Launched in India With MIL-STD-810H Durability: Price, Specifications
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2025. All rights reserved.