Orbital ATK Antares Rocket Streaks to Orbit with 3 Tons of NASA Research Bound for Space Station after Stunning Nighttime Virginia Launch: Photos

Orbital ATK Antares rocket streaks to orbit punching in and out of low, thick cloud layer in the long exposure image of the Cygnus OA-9 cargo freighter launch at 4:44 a.m. May 21, 2018 from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia with 3.7 tons of science and hardware bound for the International Space Station (ISS).  Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/SpaceUpClose.com

Ken Kremer  --   SpaceUpClose.com  --   21 May 2018

WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY, VA – An Orbital ATK Antares rocket blasted off and streaked to orbit successfully at 4:44 a. EDT with over 3 tons of NASA science and research investigations and gear on a Cygnus cargo resupply mission bound for the International Space Station (ISS) after a stunning nighttime launch from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Virginia’s Eastern shore on May 21.

Cygnus lifted off on an upgraded two stage Antares 230 rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on Orbital ATK’s ninth contracted cargo mission under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services contract took place under overcast skies with distant thunderstorms threatening the launch until almost the last moment.

Resolving a few technical issues with nitrogen valves also caused the team to psuh the launch to the very end of the 5 minute launch window.

In  the end it all went well and cheers erupted from the crowd as the RD-181 engines ignited and Antares ever so slowly liftoff off.

The rocket punched in and out of the low hanging  cloud deck  but was visible for over six minutes. Even the 2^nd stage firiong coud be seen in the dim ground haze as the rocker arced over and accelerated to orbit.

Check out our SpaceUpClose launch photo gallery of the erected rocket captured during our pad OA tour and remote camera set up this morning

Click back as the gallery grows.

The Orbital ATK Antares rocket blasts off with Cygnus OA-9 spacecraft from Pad 0A Monday, May 21, 2018 at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on 9^th  contracted resupply mission for NASA to the International Space Station to deliver 3.7 tons of research and food and gear – in this remote camera view from the pad. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/SpaceUpClose.com

The launch delighted spectators and local residents alike.

It was extremely loud and woke those who forgot to rise in time with a loud rumbling. Quite a few folks told me they were shocked out of bed by the loud noises that shook their houses and rattled windows  to the foundations too!

The Cygnus vessel is jam packed with over 3.5 tons (7400 pounds)  of science, research equipment, cargo, food, water, spare parts and supplies bound for the six person multinational crew living and working aboard the million pound orbiting outpost

This will support more than 50 of the more than 250 investigations underway on the space station for the Expedition 55 and 56 crews.. 

The rocket measures 42.4 meters in height and 3.9 meters in diameter.  The Cygnus has a pressurized volume of 27 cubic meters and is 6.39 m in height. It is loaded with 800 kg (1764 lb) of propellants.  

The mission, alternatively named CRS-9 or OA-9, is Orbital ATK’s ninth contracted cargo delivery flight to the International Space Station for NASA.

Cygnus will deliver vital equipment, supplies and scientific equipment to the space station as part of Orbital ATK’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA.

 

NASA astronauts Scott Tingle and Ricky Arnold will use the space station’s robotic arm to capture Cygnus when it arrives at the station Thursday, May 24. Live coverage of the rendezvous and capture will air on NASA Television and the agency’s website beginning at 3:45 a.m. Installation coverage is set to begin at 7:30 a.m.

The Orbital ATK Antares rocket blasts off with Cygnus OA-9 spacecraft from Pad 0A Monday, May 21, 2018 at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on 9^th  contracted resupply mission for NASA to the International Space Station to deliver 3.7 tons of research and food and gear – in his remote camera view from the pad. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/SpaceUpClose.com

Included in the cargo in the pressurized area of Cygnus is a centuries-old method of celestial navigation. The Sextant Navigation investigation will explore the use of a hand-held sextant for emergency navigation on missions in deep space as humans look to travel farther from Earth. The ability to sight angles between the Moon or planets and stars offers crews another option to find their way home if communications and main computers are compromised.

Monitoring crew health and the biological environment of the space station, and understanding long-term effects of space travel on both, are critical to NASA’s plans for long-duration, deep space exploration. The Biomolecule Extraction and Sequencing Technology (BEST) study is the agency’s next step toward advancing in-space DNA sequencing technologies that can identify microbial organisms living on the space station and understanding how the DNA of humans, plants and microbes are affected by microgravity. BEST will use a process that sequences DNA directly from a sample, with minimal preparation, rather than using the traditional technique of growing a culture from the sample. 

The Orbital ATK Antares rocket blasts off with Cygnus OA-9 spacecraft from Pad 0A Monday, May 21, 2018 at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on 9^th  contracted resupply mission for NASA to the International Space Station to deliver 3.7 tons of research and food and gear – in his remote camera view from the pad. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/SpaceUpClose.com

In the realm of modern physics, the new Cold Atom Lab (CAL) on Cygnus could help answer some big questions. CAL creates a temperature 10 billion times colder than the vacuum of space, then uses lasers and magnetic forces to slow down atoms until they are almost motionless. In the microgravity environment of the space station, CAL can observe these ultra-cold atoms for much longer than possible on Earth. Results of this research could lead to a number of improved technologies, including sensors, quantum computers and atomic clocks used in spacecraft navigation. 

Cygnus is scheduled to depart the station in July with several tons of trash and burn up during re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere, over the Pacific Ocean. The vehicle is named after James “J.R.” Thompson, a leader in the aerospace industry.

For more than 17 years, humans have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and demonstrating new technologies, making research breakthroughs not possible on Earth that will enable long-duration human and robotic exploration into deep space. A global endeavor, more than 200 people from 18 countries have visited the unique microgravity laboratory that has hosted more than 2,400 research investigations from researchers in 103 countries.

Watch for Ken’s continuing onsite coverage of Orbital ATK, SpaceX, ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin and more space and mission reports direct from the Wallops Flight Facility, Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Stay tuned here for Ken's continuing Earth and Planetary science and human spaceflight news: www.kenkremer.com –www.spaceupclose.com – twitter @ken_kremer - ken at kenkremer.com