NASA and Orbital ATK postpone commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station

A commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station ( ISS ) has been rescheduled to no earlier than 16 October, 2016. The Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft will be launched on the upgraded Antares rocket from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. 2,400 kg of supplies and scientific apparatus are loaded and waiting on Cygnus. SpaceX and Orbital ATK are private companies partnering with NASA for resupply missions to the ISS.

The delay is because of bad weather from Nicole, the tropical storm, which is expected to turn into a hurricane by the time it reaches Bermuda. Steven Kremer, chief of the Wallops Range and Mission Management Office said “The tracking station at Bermuda is required to conduct the Antares launch from Wallops. The ability to support a launch will depend on the impact the storm has on not only our systems, but also the overall Bermuda infrastructure” A livestream of the launch can be viewed here .

If the launch happens on 16 October, the launch window is expected to last for five minutes. Cygnus will be delivered to its target orbit after a 10 minute ride on the Antares rocket. The Cygnus spacecraft will remain in orbit for several days, before rising to dock into the International Space Station. The robotic arm on the International Space Station will capture Cygnus, and bring it closer for the docking maneuver. After the resupply, Cygnus will separate and orbit the Earth for several more days before finding a safe point for re-entry.